He's the One
by Serenity Uzimatsu
Summary: Yami is just a little doll who has lived his entire life on that accursed toy-shelf. No one wanted him, that is until a certain spiky haired high-schooler walks in and spots him. Yami doll xYugi fluff.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Wow, it's been so long since I've been on here. Well this time, it's a YamixYugi pairing! This is my first yaoi so please go easy on me! It's simple fluff so nothing to big. R&R please! Oh and if you don't like, don't read!  
**

_Disclaimer: I do __**not **__Yami or Yugi, [if I did it would be an ultimate yaoi series] the awesome Kazuki Takahashi! I only own the plot of this Fanfic._

_

* * *

_He's lived all his life on that shelf. Day in and day out, he sat there, praying to Ra that one day that special someone would come and buy him. That was his only wish. His name was, Yami the doll.

Poor Yami, each day his heart filled with hope only for it to be shattered when the customer didn't give him a second look. Each day, he lost that little confident shine in his plastic eyes. What was wrong with him? Was he condemned to this life on this accursed shelf for the rest of his doll life, until it was time to throw him out? He was losing all hope for that day.

It was a regular day at the toy shop. Customers crowded around every new thing tha caught their eyes. Today, Yami just wasn't in the mood to look his best. He wasn't in the mood to hope.

The bell at the front door rang, signifying a new customer had walked in. Yami looked up, curious but not hopeful as to who this customer was. As his eyes locked on to this new customer, his little button heart skipped a beat. It was a group of high schoolers. A girl with fluorescent blue eyes and brown hair stood at the front, her gaze scanning the store quickly before something caught her interest, allowing her to detach from the group. Behind her had stood two boys, both with liquid chocolate eyes, however one had blond hair, while the others was pure white. Like the female, something had caught their attention and they walked off.

However, Yami was attracted to the shortest of the group. His hair was tri-colored, just like Yami's, however unlike his crimson eyes, this boy had eyes like amethysts. A strange feeling bubbled in his stuffing filled tummy. Yami wanted this boy to come to him. He needed him to.

Yugi's eyes scanned the aisles, nothing really catching his attention, that is until his eyes stopped at the last aisle. There, a small doll, with hair that looked similar to his own and had eyes as crimson as blood, poked out from his spot. Curious, Yugi decided to take a closer look at this doll.

Yami's button heart picked up speed as his wish had been answered. The boy was coming over to where he was. After what had seemed like an eternity the boy, halted in front of him, gingerly picking him up.

Yugi smiled as he looked at the doll. "Well hello, little guy, what's your name?" He asked, as though the doll would tell him.

Yami ached with yearning for the ability to talk, but sadly he could not.

Yugi inspected the tag on Yami and grinned as he found the name of this little doll in his hand. "Ah. So your name is 'Yami'. I'm Yugi." He laughed as he shook Yami's rounded hand between his thumb and index finger. Yami seemed to brighten as he did this.

A moment had passed before Yugi's name was called. "Yugi! Where are you, it's time to go?" His friends called.

Yugi clicked his tongue before setting Yami down. "I'm coming, Joey! Bye, Yami..." He mumbled a little sad to be going so soon. He trotted away to meet up with his friends.

Yami swelled with disappointment as he watched Yugi exit the store. Would that be the last time he ever saw him again?

* * *

**A/N: Okay and that's it for chapter one of the story! Originally it was supposed to be just one chapter but I like the way this one ended like this. I hoped you liked it!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Okay here is the second chapter! I was so surprised by the amount of reviews I got! Thank you so much! Here's the second chapter, enjoy. Please R&R! Sorry for the lateness…**

_Disclaimer: I do __**NOT**__ own Yugi-oh. Kazuki Takahashi does. I only own the plot of this story and nothing more._

The day ended ever so slowly after Yugi had left the store. Yami's stuffed insides ached with yearning to see him again. To his disappointment, however, Yugi did not come back.

Soon closing time arrived. The lights were shut down, the doors to enter the store, locked. It was a routine Yami had grown accustomed to.

The shop owners would count their earnings for that day before safely putting it under lock and key. Each toy was counted, for the next day's stock. Then each worker would clock out, bidding the others a good day, before the owner closed the place down, but not before pocketing a little of the earnings.

Yami exhaled, his small body sagging forward. No matter how used to nights, he could not tolerate them. There was always something that frightened him about the dark of the night. Maybe it was the eerie quiet. Possibly the fact that there was nothing he could see in front of him to ease his paranoia. Or maybe, just maybe, it was the loneliness of having to stay on that shelf, knowing that everyone else around him was being brought by loving people. Whatever it could have been, Yami did not know.

Slowly the night passed over, bringing a new day with it.

The store was once again in business, people hustling and bustling about. Parent's trying to please their unsatisfied children, collectors looking for that one item that would make their collection complete and many more customers with reason entered and exited,

Like the days before, Yami's hope faded, this time more so then usual. Each time the bell of the front door rang, his sight would shoot up in hopes of seeing Yugi once more, only to come to the realization that it wasn't him.

The sadness of not seeing Yugi plucked at his stuffing ever so annoyingly. Yami cursed those baby dolls with the ability to have water run from their eyes. If he could, he would have done so the beginning of that day.

The door opened and closed. Another customer. Yami peeked up and sighed, his small body slouching a tiny bit. It was simply a small child with his parents. The kid, a girl, ran wildly about the store, shouting whenever she wanted something of her interest. The parents slowly walked behind her, as if knowing she would do this but in the end would come to one ultimate decision, Her shouts, along with that of many others, filled the small store. Yami paid no more mind to it, uncaring of whoever passed through his shelf's section.

Tiny feet ran across the section, slowly, scanning with eager eyes before squeaking to a halt. Small hands reached up and snatched Yami out of his place. Startled by this motion Yami peered up, a small fright in his eyes. His body was then turned violently, in all ways, a circle, upside down, all ways possible. Finally something tugged at his tag, a sting travelling throughout his stuffing.

"…Ya…Mi… Yami. Yami!" A young girls' voice rang out repeatedly. She squeezed poor little Yami closely to her, nearly crushing him under her human strength. When the crushing was over, Yami found that unnecessary need to take in large gulps of the surrounding air.

He looked up at this violent child, only to see it was the newest customer to walk in with her parents. She scampered down the aisle yelling out to her parents, a hint of finality within her tone. She wanted this toy and she was going to have it one way or another.

"Mommy! Daddy!" She halted before the two larger figures, presenting her final find. "I want this one! I want! I want! I want!" She chanted as her parents inspected Yami. Yami's little button heart picked up speed under their gaze. He didn't like this feeling, not at all! Where was Yugi?

"Hm… What do you think, honey? Should we get it for her?" The male seemed to boom.

The woman chuckled a thoughtful look on her features. "Hm… Such a good question, dear. It depends. Was Yumi a good girl today?" She said, looking at the girl, a teasing smile replacing the thoughtfulness. The child, Yumi, eagerly nodded.

"Yumi was a good girl today! Yumi ate all her vegetables and brushed her teeth all by herself today, no mess!" She said, ready with more of her 'good' deeds of the day. Both parents hummed in unison, smiling at one another.

Looking at their daughter they nodded. Yumi squealed with joy, crushing Yami in yet another hug. Her mother stuck out her hand for the doll in order to pay for it and Yumi happily obeyed. As they walked to the cash registered, Yumi bouncing up and down, her father knelt down to her eye level. "Now Yumi, you have to promise that you'll take good care of this one okay? No more messes or tears."

At the sound of this Yami panicked. Tears? Messes? Oh dear… Would he survive this? Will Yugi come to rescue him before he was purchased? His plastic eyes glanced at the door and counter repeatedly. Sadly to say, Yugi didn't come.

The little girl squealed yet again crushing Yami under her embrace as they walked out the door and strolled toward the car. The little girl was buckled in her booster seat and her parents started the car. Yami looked longingly at his once old home, just realizing how much he was actually going to miss it after being purchased by this… This little violent creature that crushed him with hugs.

Where was Yugi's gentle hold? Why hadn't HE purchased him the day before? Somehow, during the car ride, Yami found himself blaming poor Yugi for his recent purchase. Yami stayed in the little girl's arms, fuming and feeling guilty for it. Little did he know that the car he was occupying had passed by a certain spiky haired teen on his way to the toy store…

Yugi walked quickly through the streets, maneuvering through whatever crowds of people came his way. He hadn't realized the time while he was hanging out with Ryou and his silver rabbit, Bakura. The way those two were so close he could have sworn that they were actually IN LOVE with each other instead of simply in a pet-owner loving relationship. A small giggle erupted through Yugi as he remembered Ryou and Bakura's first encounter.

_Ryou and Yugi had just walked into the pet shop to buy Tea some goldfish food. She and her busy dancing schedule… As they walked through the aisles something caught Ryou's eyes and it wasn't fish food. Yugi watched the white haired teen close in on a bunny cage that occupied a healthy silver rabbit. The rabbit's hair, almost similar to Ryou's except slightly more untamed and the vibe he gave off to Yugi seemed almost… Sinister. Ryou was mesmerized. "Yugi… I fell in love." Ryou said._

_Yugi giggled quietly, knowing his friends love for animals. "With who? The rabbit?" Yugi humored him. He earned a nod in response. A store helper then came, seeming interested in not only the potential sale but the white and tri-haired cuties as well._

"_May I help you?" She said, using her sweetest voice. _

"_Yea, can I get this rabbit?" Ryou asked, his eyes never leaving the small creature. The store helper seemed a bit irritated at this fact._

"_Of course I'll take him out for you, Hun." She said brushing close to Yugi and proceeding to release a certain lazy silver rabbit. "All right lets ring him up." She said._

_Needless to say the rabbit was brought, the fish food all but forgotten, earning a frustrated Tea and ecstatic Ryou in the end._

The story never ceased to leave a smile on Yugi's face whenever he remembered it. Soon Yugi found himself in front of the toy store, surprised that the walk was faster then he believed it would be. Quickly he entered and headed straight toward the aisle he had found Yami in the day before. Yesterday he felt exactly what Ryou felt the day he met Bakura, sadly he couldn't make the purchase due to having no money and determination to purchase the doll on his own.

He quickly scanned the aisle, panic rising within when he had not seen Yami. Could it have been that someone had purchased the tiny doll that held his interest? But when? Yugi went straight to the clerk.

"Excuse me…" He said catching the cashier's attention.

"What can I do for you?"He said leaning on the counter towards Yugi.

"Um... I was wondering what happened to the 'Yami Egyptian Ruler' doll you had in the last aisle, section E…" Yugi said worried about the man's answer.

The clerk thought for a moment, mumbling over the information Yugi had given him. "Ah! That doll. He was sold this afternoon, a bout thirty minutes ago, you just missed him." He said sympathetically.

Yugi's shoulders slumped and he felt as though he would cry. "Oh… Is that so? I'm sorry to have wasted your time. Thank you." He said turning around to leave.

The clerk looked at him, an understanding look in his eyes. "Hey kid! Wait. I think we might have some others in stock if you want me to I can go out to the back and check…"

Yugi shook his head. "Thank you but I really wanted that specific doll." He said before a thought came to him. "But, if it's possible could you please tell me something about the person brought who it?" He asked hopeful

The clerk shook his head. "Sorry, kiddo, no can do. Store privacy policies forbids that." He said before taking another glance at Yugi's dejected face. "But…. They never said anything about telling you names…" Yugi looked up at him, a thankful look in his eyes, urging him to continue. "I heard the little girl's name was Yumi and the parents looked like they were Mrs. And Mr. Tenshi They come here often. Well that's all I can tell you without getting fired." The clerk said.

Yugi nodded and thanked the clerk happily before running out of the store determined to find Yami. The clerk sighed as he ran out and slumped in his seat. "There goes a broken rule. The things I do for cute guys."

**A/N: Okay so there you have it the second chapter! I'm really sorry for the lateness of it, things have been coming up but I promise to continue and update whatever stories I have as much and soon as possible! R&R please and thank you! Hope you enjoyed.**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Chapter three! I'm extremely sorry about the late update; again things have come up... But, here I am! Thank you everyone who reviewed, I had a really good laugh over a majority of them. Okay well enough of my jibber jabber, here's the third chapter! R&R please and enjoy!**

_Disclaimer: Yugi-Oh __**does not **__belong to me, sadly. If it did, *Laughs* anyway, it belongs to the amazing Kazuki Takahashi. I own only the plot of this Fanfic, and Yumi and her family, nothing more though._

_

* * *

_

Yugi ran out of the store, keeping the names 'Yumi' and 'Mr. & Mrs. Tenshi' on his mind. _Why is it that they sound so familiar?_ Yugi wondered curiously, having the strangest feeling of familiarity with the names. He shrugged it off and continued running off to some unknown destination.

Yami must have had fell asleep to the car's gentle rocking motion on the streets, because the next thing he remembered was waking up to the slow stop of the Tenshi's automobile. His eyes blurred but, before he could refocus them, he was stolen of all air, before he could get a proper look of the accursed place around him. He gasped for precious oxygen, now finding the need for it.

"Look! Look, Yami! We're home! Mommy, down, down, I wanna go down!" Yumi squealed and whined. It seemed that the violent creature did have a weakness: being strapped down.

"Calm down, I'll be right there, Yumi." Her mother chuckled. Yami was amazed at how this creature had power over beings larger then both he and the monster herself.

Mrs. Tenshi walked around the car side and unbuckled her daughter, helping her get out of the car as well. "There you go, now off to the house with you." She smiled gently at her daughter.

Yumi smiled widely, bidding her mother a quick "Thank you, Mommy", before running off into the house.

"We're home!" Yumi squealed, squeezing Yami yet again, stealing him of his breath. She bounded up the stairs, and toward her room. She threw the door open. "We have a new friend!" She announced proudly, to a room full of other stuffed toys.

Yami's vision widened and if he could, his mouth would have been wide open. So. Many. Toys! Yami's vision scanned the room, so many smiles but... Something did not seem quite right with them.

Yumi carried Yami further into the room, introducing him to the many dolls and toys that were confined within her small room. The closer Yami got to them; the fear in him grew larger as his suspicions were confirmed. These dolls each were battered and torn, some worse than others but each noticeably so. Where was he?

Silence seemed to fill the air around him, even though little Yumi continued to chatter on. Oh how Yami hoped this was a dream but, by the hold Yumi had on him, it seemed to be more reality then fiction...

* * *

Yugi's hands rested on his knees as he tried to catch his breath. He had run all the way back to his house at the Kame Game shop. "Grandpa!" He called as he walked through the doors, after finally getting his breath back.

"Yugi! What's the matter? You're out of breath!" Solomon came out from behind the counter to check his grandson.

"Never mind that now, Grandpa, what do you know about the Tenshi's and Yumi, their daughter?" Yugi asked in a hurried tone.

The question, however, surprised Solomon. "Yugi, you don't remember them?" He asked earning a nod from his grandson. "Well, I can't blame you, I guess, it's been a while since you've seen them. You used to babysit Yumi when she was much younger, did it for quite awhile, until schoolwork got in the way and so you had to stop. They've kept in contact with me though, they say they miss you as a babysitter and Yumi asks about you every so often. Why do you ask?" Yugi's grandfather gave him a curious look.

"Uh, no real reason, I just heard about them and they seemed really familiar to me. Can you tell me where they live again? I think I'd like to pay them a visit." Yugi said, his feet itching to get there as soon as possible. The only thoughts actually running through his head was getting back Yami. He had not even considered the fact that this might be too sudden a visit.

"Oh they live a few blocks away, same house as before. Here, I'll give you the address." Solomon scribbled the address on a random piece of paper he found and handed it to Yugi. Yugi scanned it, his eyebrows seeming to go up but let it go.

"Thanks, Grandpa! I'll be back before dark!" Yugi threw over his shoulder as he rushed out the door.

"See you soon, Yugi!" Solomon called back, as Yugi's figure disappeared slowly in the distance. He smiled a little to himself, while shaking his head. "Ah, that grandson of mine." He said before glancing around the room. "Now where did I put those calculations...? YUGI!" He yelled, after realizing he'd given him the paper he needed.

Yugi followed the directions to the house, keeping at a steady pace, so as not to seem out of breath when he got there.

A few minutes had passed when Yugi finally reached the house. He walked up to the front door and took a deep breath before knocking on the door. He waited until finally a woman, in her mid-thirties, opened the door for him. "Hello?" She asked when her gaze went to Yugi. They widened momentarily. "Yugi? Oh my! You've grown so much! It's been quite awhile since we've seen you. Come in, come in." She said happily, just about pushing poor Yugi into the house.

"It's good to see you too, . How are Mr. Tenshi and Yumi?" He asked when he finally had control over his body again.

"Come, sit, and make yourself at home. They're doing wonderful; we just brought Yumi a new toy this afternoon. She's infatuated with it, hasn't let it go since we got it for her." Mrs. Tenshi said as she flitted about the room. She had always been one to flit across the room whenever she had a guest in her abode. "Yumi! Dear! We have a guest!" She called her family down.

"Thank you." Yugi said, slightly uncomfortable by the closeness. He took a seat at the table.

"Would you like anything, Yugi?" She asked, looking through her cabinets, already taking tea to make.

Yugi smiled, remembering that it was wise to just go along with her. "Yes, please." He said as the sound of footsteps resounded from the stairs.

"Yes, Mommy?" Yumi said as she stepped carefully down the steps, a small doll within her hands.

"You called, honey?" Mr. Tenshi asked as he stood at the top of the stairs behind Yumi.

"We have a guest! And you wouldn't believe who it is!" Mrs. Tenshi joyfully said.

Yumi and Mr. Tenshi looked at the table, both instantly remembering the spiky hair. "Yugi!' Yumi squealed, going down the stairs quickly.

"Yumi, be careful! Yugi, it's so good to see you after all this time!" Mr. Tenshi said as he walked down the rest of the stairs.

Yumi clung to Yugi's pants leg, further crushing Yami.

Yami was extremely shocked and confused. How did Yugi know this monstrous creature? Did Yugi plan on them buying him? Was Yugi going to get him back? So many questions ran through his tiny mind. None of this made sense to Yami, so he decided to pay closer attention to their conversations.

Yugi chuckled at the little girl who clung to him. "Yumi." He said, picking her up with no struggle. He placed her on his lap. "Have you been a good girl?" He asked her.

Yumi nodded. "Yumi has! See I got a new dolly!" She said, presenting Yami to Yugi.

Yugi put on his poker face as he inspected Yami. Yup, he was definitely the one Yugi was looking for. "Can I see him?" Yugi said putting out his hand.

Yumi placed Yami into Yugi's hand without hesitation. Yugi held him gingerly, his eyes boring into Yami's. Yami's little stuffed heart pounded in his ears. Yugi was finally holding him once again.

Yugi's eyes held so many things he wanted to say to the little doll, but couldn't since he was surrounded by other's. He smiled gently, before sadly placing Yami back into Yumi's waiting hands. She proceeded to squeeze the air out of Yami, much to both of their distaste.

"So Yugi, what brings you to our home, after all this time?" Mrs. Tenshi finally spoke up. Yugi looked up at her.

"Well, truthfully, I'm unsure of the reason myself. I heard your names at one point today and it rang a bell in my mind. I went home to ask my grandpa and well here I am. It's been quite some time since I've seen you and plus I was wondering how Yumi has been doing." Yugi answered, a majority of the truth, but left out the part about Yami, much to the poor doll's displeasure.

"Well, Yugi, it's really nice seeing you again. It really hasn't been the same since you stopped baby-sitting Yumi. She hasn't really had any connection to other baby-sitters like she did you… She really did miss you, we were actually pretty surprised she remembered, being that she was so young and all…" Mr. Tenshi's voice trailed off as he explained the situation they've been in since they had last seen him. Yugi nodded, waiting for him to continue, having the slightest feeling that he knew what they were going to ask next but neither of them said a word as they stared at one another, a silent conversation passing through them.

Yugi had gotten the feeling that they needed to talk some things out at that moment. "Mr. & Mrs. Tenshi if you don't mind, I think I'll go and play with Yumi for a little while, she's seems so energetic at the moment and I can see you both need to discuss some things." Both elders nodded, not surprised that Yugi sensed this from them, after all Yugi was like a son to the two and acted so much like an elder brother to Yumi, unlike the other uncaring babysitters.

Taking Yumi by the hand, he led her out of the room and then allowed himself to be pulled by the small girl up the stairs. Yumi, being only a small girl, obviously wanted to present Yugi with all the new toys and good deeds she had done over the years he had not been there.

Her door flew open and Yugi was instantly surrounded by the looks of several badly torn dolls. He grimaced internally and Yami felt like fainting when having to relive this sight of horror. "Yugi, look at all the new toys I've got!" Yumi squealed, running with a new found hyper energy around the room. She stood momentarily by each pile before setting off to the next.

When she had finished she settled herself down on a small plastic chair at a rounded, girlish pink table, covered in plastic tea cups, plates and utensils. Moderate sized dolls sat at the table, dressed up awkwardly, each one having a hand outstretched to touch the handle of the tea cup that was placed in front of them. One chair was available as Yumi beckoned Yugi to sit. He did as she wanted.

Yumi, rather roughly, placed Yami down onto the table, his small body rolled onto his side, his button eye coming dangerously close to a plastic fork tip. If he could, Yami would have widened his eyes out of shock, instead he prayed to Ra, his thoughts screaming:_ This monstrous child is trying to __**kill**__ me! How many methods of torture does she have to use against me, who has done nothing but been squeezed painfully by her?_

Yugi's eyes, however, did widen but, only slightly, so that Yumi would not notice. "So, Yugi would you like one lump or two?" The little girl across from him asked.

He gulped slightly, worried for Yami's well being and replied: "One lump, please." His eyes never left the sight of the poor abused doll. How was he going to get Yami back…?

* * *

**A/N: Okie so that's all for now. This is the longest chapter so far. I did not expect this story to go farther then three chapters, but alas some things come unexpectedly. Poor Yami, hopefully Yugi will get him back soon, if he's able to get Yami out of the clutches of Yumi, that is... *Smiles a bit mischievously* Alright, so I hope you enjoyed this chapter and sorry if it seems a bit rushed! Please R&R and again I apologize for it's lateness, but I do intend to finish what I started, so thank you those who have been patient with me. Till next time! **


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Fourth chapter! Thank you everyone who reviewed the previous chapter. I laughed and got a few good ideas as well. As usual please R&R and enjoy the story! I apologize if it is a bit short!  
**

_Disclaimer: How many times must I walk away with my head down because __**I DO NOT**__ own Yugi-oh, the awesome Kazuki Takahashi does. I own only the plot of this Fanfic._

_

* * *

_

Yumi and Yugi had played Tea Party for a while; luckily Yumi never noticed that Yugi's mind was not on the Tea Party but on how to get Yami back.

"Oh no, Mrs. Bun-Bun! Mr. Duck never could have said something so rude to you!" Yumi said, feigning shock after carefully placing the plastic cup onto the table.

Yugi's eyes wandered away from the imaginative little girl, back to Yami, who was luckily rolled away from the dangerous fork tip earlier in the game. As Yugi looked at the doll, he could see a pleading shine in those plastic eyes, as though trying to say, "Save me."

So far all the plans that Yugi had come up with were shot down. He couldn't just steal the doll, he was too kind for that and he knew that it would be odd if Yami just happened to be missing after he had left the house. The Tenshi's were not as dumb as they seemed and since they knew his grandfather, that would end up in only a bigger problem then he intended.

If Yugi tried borrowing the doll from Yumi for 'a while' she was bound to ask about it, especially since she seemed so attached to the small doll. So that was yet another plan that was instantly shot down in vain.

But what else could he do? He thought of compromising with the little girl, maybe that could work…? They could make a trade, but what would that little girl want that Yugi could both afford and get without much attention being arisen? He'd have to make the little girl keep a secret, unless…. Could he get the parents involved but only slightly so they knew of the situation? No, too risky. He'd have to make the little girl keep a secret but first, he needed information.

"Yumi, how much do you love that doll?" Yugi casually asked, pointing at Yami. Yumi looked up at the question and then followed the direction of where he was pointing until she was looking at her latest toy. She gazed at him for only a short moment before she looked back at Yugi.

"I love him bunches! He's such a cute dolly! I'll love him forever and take good care of him…" The little girl could have went on for hours on just how much she 'loved' the doll but Yugi nodded, indicating that he understood her answer. He sighed internally, this was going to be extremely harder then he originally thought.

"Do you love your other dollies just as much?" Yugi asked, prying for more information.

"Hm… Not really… I love them but their all broken and daddy says if I play with any of them anymore they'll end up all broken and it'll be harder to fix them…" Yumi said with a tint of sadness. She looked off into her room her gaze lingering on a certain brown bear that Yugi happened to remember.

_So she ended up breaking that one up too… Guess I know where that earning went…_ Yugi thought, looking at the doll he had brought for her, just before he took off from his babysitting job. She must have really cherished that doll a lot…

Yugi sighed yet again, earning a look from Yumi. "What's da matter, Yugi?" She asked, tilting her head to the side. His head was swimming in thoughts, knowing that he wasn't willing to give up Yami, no matter how much the little girl adored the doll.

"Nothing, Yugi's just a little brain-tired." He explained, talking to her like he used too, in third person. She nodded pretending to understand completely. They sat in silence for a few moments, as Yugi tried to sort out his thoughts carefully and Yumi pretended to sip tea from the empty plastic cup. At last he shook his head and heaved a sigh. Yumi peered at him curiously, noticing the changes in him from when they last had seen each other.

"…Yugi…?" Yumi called cautiously. He looked at the girl a smile on his face.

"Yes, Yumi?" He asked, also curious to what she wanted to say.

"You're different." She bluntly stated, earning a shocked face from the older.

"Good different? Or bad different?" Yugi asked cautiously. He honestly wanted to know because saw no difference in himself as the years passed.

Yumi happily smiled. "Good different!" She squealed. "Yugi's taller and um… What's that word mommy use when we go to parties? Oh! Com-Po-S-Ed." She sounded out the word wrongly, not even knowing its meaning. Yugi chuckled. "Yugi's also prettier and cuter!" Yugi stopped, suddenly feeling awkward. Was she making him out to be a girl? He laughed a bit more.

"Thank you, Yumi." He said reaching across the table to ruffle her hair as he continued laughing to himself, a slight tint of pink on his face from embarrassment.

Yami enjoyed the sound of Yugi's lighthearted laughter, that and just his voice were music to the small dolls stitched ears. Even after he was traumatized he still felt content, happy even, after listening to his Yugi. Yami was slightly shocked at himself, claiming Yugi as his own, what kind of doll was he? But still, the joy it gave him to call Yugi 'his', gave him a sense of reassurance and the pride it gave him wasn't so bad either. Little Yami was becoming more possessive of Yugi as the moments passed…

"Yumi! Yugi! Would you like anything to eat?" Mrs. Tenshi called from down the stairs. Yugi looked at the little girl across from him about to repeat the question. But as he opened his mouth to ask, her small tummy growled viciously, slightly scaring the tri-haired doll she was reaching for.

The little girl grinned sheepishly as Yugi shut his mouth and got up from the table, offering his hand to her as she walked up to him. She grinned a widely and she snatched his hand in hers, towing him out of the room and down the stairs. She had to, yet again, be reminded to take it easy going down the steps.

Yumi did not hesitate to take a seat at the table, though it did take her some time to climb onto the high seat. Yugi watched them with distant eyes. Mrs. Tenshi had just placed a bowl of noodles in front of Yumi and looked over to Yugi. "Yugi?" She said, snapping out of his trance. He shook his head, momentarily lost from his surroundings. When it came back to him he smiled at her.

"I'm sorry. Yes?" He replied.

"Would you like anything to eat? Come sit, come sit." She said, grabbing his hand and pulling him to a seat on the table.

"Sit Yugi!" Yumi commanded, her mouth slightly full.

"Yumi, don't talk with your mouth full." Mr. Tenshi said a humorous smile on his face. She nodded, chewing and swallowing before repeating her command to Yugi.

Yugi obeyed and almost immediately placed a bowl of noodles in front of him as well. He almost laughed at their hospitality, not even he and his grandfather were this efficient.

"So Yugi…." Mrs. Tenshi said as she rocked on the balls of her feet, obviously nervous. Yugi turned his head towards her, curiosity in his eyes. "Me and Mr. Tenshi were wondering… If you would possibly consider babysitting our little Yumi once again…" She said with a slight pleading in her eyes.

* * *

**A/N**: **That's the end for chapter four. Thanks for reading! Please R&R and I do hope you enjoyed! Will Yugi agree to the Tenshi's question? Will he deny the offer? Until next time!  
**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Hi-hi! Thanks for the reviews! Sorry for the late update this week, Midterms prevented me from beginning this chapter as well as writing it. Gr…. Well anyhow, here it is! As always R&R! Enjoy! (I really am sorry for the late update!)  
**

_Disclaimer: How many times must I say this? I DO NOT own Yugi-oh, Kazuki Takahashi does. I only own the plot of this story, Yumi and her parents and nothing more._

_

* * *

_

"_So Yugi…." Mrs. Tenshi said as she rocked on the balls of her feet, obviously nervous. Yugi turned his head towards her, curiosity in his eyes. "Me and Mr. Tenshi were wondering… If you would possibly consider babysitting our little Yumi once again…" She said with a slight pleading in her eyes._

Yugi's eyes widened slightly in surprise, true he had somehow figured they would ask him this, but he wasn't completely expecting it. He chewed his lip lightly, contemplating his decision. He could feel the anticipation radiating off of the family along with their stares. Did he really want to go back to baby-sitting again?

True, after he had quit baby-sitting, he did have more time for himself and to spend time with his family and friends. However that had left him with less money than when he had been working and it wasn't fair of him to live off of whatever money his grandfather had given to him as allowance. In a way, he felt that he didn't fully deserve it, making it so that he did not have any right to spend it on any luxuries. He had also missed keeping in touch with others who used to be so close to him and were actually trying to keep that connection with him.

Yugi glanced at the faces of each of the other people in this room. He let out the breath he had not realized he was holding. The Tenshi parents tensed, thinking it was a sigh of rejection. Suddenly Yugi smiled at each of them before looking back to Mrs. Tenshi.

"Okay, I'll do it. I think it's time I get back to babysitting anyway." He said. The tension leaving the women was evident as her whole body relaxed and she released a sigh of relief. "So when do you want me to start?" Yugi asked.

She looked at her husband, question in her eyes before finally Mr. Tenshi spoke up. "Hm… Well me and the missus were planning on going out two days from now, and we've been looking for a baby-sitter since last week… No one was turning up and Yumi didn't like the ones we suggested so we were about to just let go of the plan…" His voice trailed off.

"I'll take the job." Yugi said, his hands folded in his lap as he tried to look business-like. Yami cursed the fact that he could not move any part of his body without assistance, leaving him unable to look at this new face of Yugi. _Why Ra, why? _He wondered as he inwardly frowned.

The parents and young girl smiled widely, thanking him silently. "We'll pay you of course!" Mrs. Tenshi said, accidentally forgetting that important factor. Yugi shook his head.

"No need to for this one. I'll do it this time for free, since you helped me consider baby-sitting again." He smiled. The shine in Yami's eyes came back momentarily. His Yugi was so kind. The parents, on the other hand, frowned slightly.

"But, we couldn't possibly-" They were interrupted.

"No, really it's fine this time-" Yugi was interrupted as well as the Tenshi parents argued back as well. The discussion left Yumi out, as she was forced to watch as each side was not getting anywhere. Yami wanted to laugh at the squabble. All this on whether or not to pay for a couple-of-hour's job.

Yumi grabbed Yami by the feet, making him mentally gulp. This was going to be painful, very painful. She dragged the stuffed doll off of the table, making him hit the edge of it. For once, he knew what the saying 'Seeing stars' meant. He was then 'accidentally' dropped to the floor as she made her way down the chair. Her foot stepped on his hair and made him skid slightly in front of the girl, leaving enough room for her to step on him once again. She was closing in on him, her eyes wandering around the room, obviously looking for the tortured doll. "Yami?" She mumbled, as though the doll would answer her.

Another gulp passed through the dolls mind. She was getting closer to his immobile body. Soon her foot was hovering over the doll, unknowingly about to squish him. Yami wished he could just shut his eyes right then and there, believing that would at least soften the blow. He cursed that he wasn't one of those dolls with the ability to do so. The foot was inching closer. Any second now and the pain would come…

Yugi gasped when he happened to glimpse at the scene that was occurring. Yumi had just thrown Yami to the floor, accidentally or not it was the beginning of doll abuse. She stepped on his tri-colored hair, pushing him in the process. Yugi himself mentally winced at the sight, being as he too had tri-colored hair similar to Yami's, imagining that happening to him would be evident. Finally, time seemed to freeze around Yugi when he saw Yumi's foot preparing to stomp on Yami. He snapped out of his watching trance and sprung, literally, into action.

Yugi jumped from his seat, skidding across the floor, in order to save Yami from doom. He actually succeeded in doing so, successfully pushing the doll some feet away. Yami would get dirty but still, at least he would be safe.

Yugi looked up to see where the doll had skidded to but before he could catch a glance, Yumi had stepped on the back of his head, smashing poor Yugi's face into the floor. A large portion of her weight, which was surprisingly heavy for such a small girl, pressed down onto the foot Yugi was squashed under. Of course this was all pure accident, for the little girl was naturally distracted by things around her to know what was actually going on. Finally the little girl realized what she was doing, after her parents screamed her name. She jumped back a couple of inches, giving Yugi space to get back up. Yugi didn't get up for a moment, worrying Yumi's parents and scaring Yumi herself.

Another moment passed and silence filled the room along with anticipation. A small groan erupted from the boy, face-planted on the ground. His hands moved so that he could ease his body up shakily. He stood up and wobbled to Yumi's previous seat, the one closest to him. His hand held the back of his head the entire time, the spot where the little girl had stomped on him.

He sighed, leaning back in the chair, obviously dizzy from his painful experience. Still it was better him then poor, defenseless Yami.

"Yugi, are you alright? Yumi we TOLD you to behave and take care of that doll! You're lucky that Yugi cared enough to save it!" Both of the parents shouted simultaneously. He winced as the sound pierced his ears and sent a jolt of pain to his head. That was just what he needed, a headache. The fact that they were shouting to defend him wasn't helping either nor was the beginning of Yumi's wailing. The only thing that actually made him happy was the fact that Yami was safe. He groaned as he put his face into his hands.

"Sorry…" Mrs. Tenshi whispered soothingly, so as not to upset his already now searing headache. Silence filled the room as they waited for his response patiently.

"It's—" He was interrupted by a another wail by Yumi. He sighed, his head pulsing annoyingly. He turned to the small girl, a gentle look in his eye. "Shh… It's al—" Yet again, he was interrupted by the little girl. It amazed Yami and the parents at how patient he could be.

"Nose! Blood!" She screamed, more tears pooling from her eyes. She backed away and ran into an empty hallway, her voice seeming to fade with each step. Yugi's brows furrowed slightly as he raised a hand to feel that there was in fact a thick liquid flowing from his nose. He grimaced as he tried in vain to cease and wipe away the blood.

"Oh Yugi!" Mrs. Tenshi fussed, grabbing a handful of tissues and rushed towards him. She placed a fair amount of the tissues under his nose and instructed him to sit still.

Mr. Tenshi's shoulders sagged as he sighted, running a hand through his mop of hair. "All this for a DOLL." He mumbled, his eyes apologetic. Yugi felt insulted, Yami was not just a doll to him but he figured that Mr. Tenshi couldn't see that. Yugi pushed back his annoyance at the man, not wanting to deal with it at that particular moment.

All the while Yami lay impatiently on the floor. Tension lowed through his stuffing, making their way to his cloth skin. His plastic eyes shone in fear. _What happened to Yugi?_ Was the only thought that ran wild in his mind. Again he prayed to Ra that everything would turn out right, hoping Yugi will survive the odd liquid that flowed from his nose. The strange red substance looked deadly to Yami, even if he knew nothing about the strange red. He mentally swore that he would get back at the little girl. How? He didn't know, but he would find a way.

A moment of strange awkwardness passed over the four in the kitchen. Yumi could no longer be heard wailing but somehow, Yugi just knew that she was still crying, especially when he noticed that she hadn't bothered to pick up Yami like she usually would when she dropped an item. He nosebleed had eventually ceased, however a large bruise on his forehead and the mid-section of his nose had form, that would apparently invade his face for the next few days. To top it off, Mrs. Tenshi has plastered band-aids to the bruises, making them feel slightly more uncomfortable. She never was one to be a doctor.

Yugi's eyes darted around the room, trying to distract himself from the uncomfortable tension and anxiety settling in the air of the room. It didn't help to say the least. He sighed, seeing Mrs. Tenshi jump from the corner of his eye. He decided it would be best to see Yumi and pick up Yami from the floor.

He heaved himself up from the seat with slight effort. The parents eyes looked at him but said nothing, somehow knowing that it was best to let Yugi do what he did best when it came to child-care: Comforting the child. He excused himself as he headed to where Yami lay, gingerly picking up the doll, a apologetic look in his eyes. Somehow, the doll seemed to reflect the look back at him with it's own little shine. Yugi held Yami semi-tightly but still gently so he could feel as Yami gently swayed in his hand as he walked.

Yami was in bliss, but was still slightly outraged with the fact that they were headed in the direction of where that little beast had gone. How dare she hurt Yugi without offering him so much as an apology! Anger seemed to seep into his cloth skin, making Yugi briefly look at the doll within his hold, before deciding to ignore it.

It wasn't long before they found the little girl curled up into a little ball in the corner of a guest room. A small smile graced Yugi's lips before a grimace replaced it. It even felt uncomfortable to change his facial features! How fragile could he be? And how the heck it managed to hurt him so he didn't know.

He crept closer to the door of the guest room, lifting Yami up so that his small doll body could successfully sit on his shoulder without leaning or threatening to fall. To Yami's pleasure, Yugi had to place Yami's hand into his hair to fully keep him from moving. After doing that, Yugi leaned casually against the door frame, silently watching as Yumi's figure shook every now and again from a large sob. His face wasn't angry, it was more forgiving and sympathetic then anything. His arms unconsciously crossed over his chest, making him more comfortable.

Yumi continued her sobs, muffling words of apology and Yugi's name over and over. Yugi eyes widened when he heard a certain muffled sentence through her choked out sobs. It actually surprised him when he heard the words; he didn't think she'd feel that way towards him...

Yami could have growled when he heard her first say the words, sadly however he was forever stuck with that rulers' smile the toy maker decided to stick him with. Yugi was his and he didn't want to share him with anyone, not even this helpless looking girl who sat before them crying her eyes out.

Yugi held back a small laugh as she continued to put more sentences to her muffled speech. She soon became like a broken record, repeating her speech for Yugi over and over, never yet noticing that the person it was meant for was standing before her, listening with an amused look in his eyes.

* * *

**A/N: *Holds back a tear* I feel so bad for doing that to Yugi and Yami. Yugi will you ever forgive me? Yami will have to eventually forgive me... Hm, I think things may have gotten a bit more interesting... I feel the need to say this, Yugi does not have any attraction for any one other then Yami, even though it may not seem so.  
**

**I apologize for the lateness for the third time. I also apologize for the shortness of this chapter. As usual please R&R! Was it good? Bad? Okay? Personally I felt like the feeling of the story changed somewhat in this chapter and it took a serious but lighthearted turn. Till next time. I hope I'll get it out earlier.  
**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: Hello! It's time for chapter 6! Thank you everyone who's been reviewing up till now, it really means a lot to me. I apologize for the slow pacing of the story; truthfully I believed the story itself would be only three to four chapters at most, which seems to be not the case. Either way, I hope you all enjoy the read and as usual please R&R. **

_Disclaimer: One of these days I will seriously burst into tears because of this *points to the evil disclaimer note* stating that I have absolutely no ownership over all things Yugi-oh, which is in fact true. The closest I'll ever get to owning anything YGO are my trading cards. The Tenshi family however I do own._

* * *

_Yugi held back a small laugh as she continued to put more sentences to her muffled speech. She soon became like a broken record, repeating her speech for Yugi over and over, never yet noticing that the person it was meant for was standing before her, listening with an amused look in his eyes and a heartwarming smile._

"Yugi, Yumi's sorry! Yumi didn't mean to hurt Yugi. Yugi is Yumi's best friend and brother! I wuv Yugi. Please don't leave me again, Yumi will be sad!" She choked out the best she could, through her tears. Yugi smiled and shook his head slightly.

"Well if that's the case…" Yugi said arms uncrossed. His hand gingerly grabbed Yami from the spot he was placed, much to the doll's displeasure. Yugi's eyes wandered down to the doll, he was going to regret his actions big time when he got home later on. "_Sorry, Yami, please bare with me… I'm so sorry!" _Yugi, mouthed to the doll.

Yami watched Yugi's lips move, forming words. He pieced them together and just knew that Yugi regret his next action. However, he trusted Yugi with all of his button heart, especially after Yugi went through that whole ordeal earlier just to save him. Understanding shone within his eyes, and when he saw Yugi, catch it, he wanted to smile. There was no other human Yami had met in all of his life, that could compare to Yugi. None.

Yugi gulped, as his hand ever so slowly stretched out, to hand Yami to Yumi. Her eyes were wide as she took the small doll, carefully for once, in her hands and hugged him close to her. Why would he go this far just to be nice to her? "Now Yumi," Yugi said, as he bent down to her eye level, "I want you to promise me – **promise me**- that you will take the utmost care of this doll. He's very special to Yugi, and I don't want **anything** happening to him. If not, I will be extremely unhappy." Yugi finished with emphasis on several parts of his speech.

Yumi took in what was said to her and nodded her head slowly, a shine of determination to uphold this vow in her eyes. "Yes, Yugi." She said, her eyes trailing down to Yami. She hugged him, but not one of those hard hugs she had been giving him hours ago, this hug was gentle and filled with emotion. Still Yami was displeased with the trade off. Was Yugi really just going to let him go?

Yugi clenched his teeth behind his closed lip smile. He fought back the desperate urge to just snatch Yami away from her and make a run for it, but he knew that would be trouble. Jealousy bubbled within his stomach, oh how he wished he had taken his sweet time her to just hold Yami a bit more. Yugi wanted to face palm himself for his stupidity, but again fought the urge to.

His eyes glanced around the room and he gasped when his eyes caught site of a nearby clock. When had it gotten so late? Grandpa will surely be worried by the time he managed to get home. He huffed a frustrated sigh. The visit today hadn't gone anyway how he wanted it and now he was late. Yumi watched him with curious eyes and tugged at his sleeve, breaking Yugi out of his trance.

"What da matter, Yugi?" She asked.

Yugi shook his head. "It's nothing, I have to get going home now. I'll see you in two days alright?" He asked, slightly rushed. He knew that those two days will pass unbearably slow but it would give him decent planning time on how to win Yami. He scooped the little girl up in his arms and swiftly carried her to the dining room where her parents waited. She giggled happily, enjoying the speed of which he walked and the wind that blew passed them.

Yumi had been disappointed along with Yami to being put down. She was about to protest when Yugi had beaten her to speaking first. "Thank you so much for today Mrs. & Mr. Tenshi. I'm so sorry for the unexpected visit and intrusion. I have to get going it seems. I'll be back in a couple of days to baby-sit Yumi. I might not be able to stop by again until then, so I wish you my best regards."

"Thank you for visiting today and don't worry about it. You're welcome here anytime! Have a safe trip back home okay? Send your grandfather our greetings!" Mrs. Tenshi spoke for her family who waved goodbye to him as he jogged out the door. They continued saying farewells until he was out of sight.

Yami, seemed the most depressed for him to leave. _Two DAYS? Oh Ra…_ Yami thought sadly, his button heart heavy as he felt his stuffing engulf it farther into his clothed body…

Yugi had his mind filled with plans and failures, more failures then actual successful plans the entire way home. As Yugi had suspected, his grandfather had been worried and was relieved to see his grandson well.

"Welcome home, Yugi. How was the visit?" Grandpa asked.

"Thanks Grandpa. It's was really good and I decided to go back to babysitting. I have my first job in two days." He answered sincerely, thoughts tossed to the side momentarily so that he could talk to his Grandfather, before retiring for the rest of the night to his room.

The conversation went on for about a good half-hour before Yugi excused himself, bidding Grandpa good night. It was strange how fast that day had passed, like one big time-adrenaline rush or something along those lines.

The night passed by swiftly, a majority of it Yugi had spent up in thought as he kept his hands busy by fiddling with a three-dimensional puzzle of sorts. He ended up falling asleep with his head rested upon the table top, using his arm as a cushion.

The next morning came, the sun shining through the shades on the window. Yugi groaned as the light rested on his closed eyes. His free hand swatted, in vain, to remove the element responsible for the disturbance of his sleep. With a long sleepy yawn he moved himself from the desk to prepare for the rest of his day.

About an hour later Yugi was in his room, clean and freshly clothed, sitting on the edge of his bed. His thoughts swirled about his mind ruthlessly as one by one they were shot down and tossed away until Yugi was left heaving a frustrated sigh, head buried into his hands.

"No good, none of them are!" He puffed, leaning back, using his hands now as a support. A moment of silence passed over his room until the phone began to chime. "I'll get it, Grandpa." Yugi called as he walked out of his room to the living to get the phone.

"Mutou residence." Yugi greeted into the phone.

"Ah! Yugi. How are you? Do you have anything planned for today?" Ryou asked.

"Oh, Ryou! Not much is going on today. I've been in better."

"Really? Want to hang out today? How about it?"

Yugi thought for a moment. _Hm… I could be spending the rest of the day planning but… Maybe I could get help from Ryou? I mean, out of everyone in the gang, Ryou would understand the situation more, but there could always be a chance that I'm wrong… I'll just have to see… _ "Alright, I'll come over in a little bit. Plus there might be something you can help me figure out…"

"Okay, cool. And sure, let's talk about it when you get over here." Ryou said and with that the conversation ended. Yugi hung up the phone and sighed. _Let's hope I'm right…_ He thought, nervousness bubbling in his stomach as he walked back into his room. He looked around, wondering if he should bring anything, when his eyes caught sight of the puzzle he was making last night. He thought for a moment before deciding against it considering that Ryou's rabbit, Bakura could be like a little thief when you didn't watch your stuff.

He walked out of the room and headed downstairs into the game shop, while shoving his feet into his shoes. He ran up to his grandfather. "Grandpa I'm going to go hang out with Ryou today." He informed the elder man.

Surogoku looked at his grandson with a smile. "Okay Yugi. But before you go have some breakfast, I'm sure you're hungry."

Yugi nodded in response to his grandfather's request, taking a seat and piling some of food onto a plate he had gotten out of a nearby cabinet. He ate as quickly as he could, washing and replacing the plate once he had finished its contents. Yugi kicked on his shoes and whatever he needed before getting ready to leave.

"Bye Grandpa, I'll see you later!" He called out from over his shoulder.

"See you later, Yugi, don't be out too late!" His Grandfather called out from the kitchen and then Yugi was off, hurrying to Ryou's.

* * *

**A/N: Again, it seems like this chapter was a bit too-slow-paced however I wanted to have Yugi's visit to Ryou's in a separate chapter, so apologies to those of you who were expecting a slightly longer chapter... The next one should add a bit more of a push to Yugi's decision as well as be a step closer to the ending.  
**

****_Hello it's me again! I haven't been on here in a long while… And I apologize to everyone who have been reading this as well as my other un-updated stories. I do not plan on dropping any of them, but things haven't seemed to be on my side. But now that it's summer and there is definitely a little less to do, I should be able to update a lot more, if things work in my favor that is._**

**_I truly, deeply apologize to everyone who has been waiting so patiently and have given me such great reviews, I feel truly terrible for having you wait so long. I hope that all of you who have been reading continue to support me despite my lack of updates as well as lateness's. Thank you for your support! The next chapter should be out as soon as I can make and correct it. Until then see you!_****


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: HERE I AM! And updating with a new chapter! It took a while and a lot of arguing with mainly myself to write this but here it is! Chapter seven! As always please enjoy and R&R!**

_Disclaimer: I sadly do not own Yugi-Oh and I never will…._

* * *

_"See you later, Yugi, don't be out too late!" His Grandfather called out from the kitchen and then Yugi was off, hurrying to Ryou's__._

Yugi jogged to Ryou's house, both for the fact that he did not want to appear too out of breath when he got there and also to sort out his thoughts with the early exercise. Thankfully it helped to a small extent by the time he was in front of Ryou's house.

Yugi knocked and waited patiently until his white haired friend opened the door, Bakura in his other hand, looking as grumpy as ever. Ryou smiled welcomingly, inviting Yugi into his house while the look on his pet said other… unpleasant things as he entered into the house with a nod.

"Ryou, it's been awhile, haven't seen you in the longest!" Yugi exclaimed as he followed Ryou up the stairs and into said boys' room. Ryou hummed in agreement as he nestled himself comfortably onto his carpeted floor, Yugi mimicked him and leaned against the crème colored wall.

"It seems so. So tell me, what have you been doing lately?" The chocolate-eye colored boy asked curiously as he gently set the fluffy Bakura down.

Yugi smiled at his friend and began to respond, "Well—", but that was all he could say before Bakura began thumping his foot against the floor, grumpily looking at Yugi. He blinked in confusion while Ryou laughed at Bakura's antics. "Anyway… I haven't been up to much as of late however I recently got in touch with my old babysitting customers and friends; the Tenshi's and well I have a job set up for tomorrow. That and….." Yugi hesitated, contemplating if he should tell Ryou his latest and by far oddest issue at hand.

Ryou sensed the tension around his friend, feeling both confused and concerned for him. Yugi chewed his lip slightly, contemplating his next move.

The next thing to happen was completely unexpected of both teens.

Bakura did a casual bunny walk to Yugi, giving him a now annoyed- grumpy look, as if trying to get Yugi to just spill what was bothering him. And it actually worked, much to both of their astonishment.

Taking a deep breath Yugi closed his eyes before reopening them and looking straight into Ryou's eyes. Said boy was rather taken aback by Yugi's 360-personality change. "Ryou… I think - no that isn't right… I know that I'm in love…" He confessed to the shocked boy.

"Oh my… Really Yugi? That's just wonderful! And pray tell who is the lucky guy/ girl?" Ryou clapped his hands joyously, happy that his friend decided to confide this news to him. It was no question that Yugi was in fact bisexual. His friends had welcomed him with open arms just like always. Somehow he could never find himself questioning his attraction to both genders and simply took it with a shrug of the shoulder. Bakura huffed, thumping his paw on Yugi's foot, after he looked at Ryou's reaction and decided to walk halfway between the boys before sitting himself down, his fluffy rump facing Yugi. Yugi smiled a little bit before chewing on his lip again.

"Ryou…" Yugi whispered, nearly giving the white-haired boy a heart attack at the way his name was said. Bakura glared at Yugi before sniffing the air and claiming a spot on his owner's lap, keeping a watchful eye on Yugi. Ryou's face gave way to a light pink tint to his flawless ivory skin. Yugi looked at him confused, what had made his friend suddenly start to blush? Was it something he had said?

After a quick moment of contemplation Yugi's own face heated up and he gasped lightly. _Oh… I get it now._ Yugi thought to himself before stammering. "Oh! I-I didn't mean you, I mean not that you aren't attractive and all, it's just that—" Both Ryou and Yugi's cheeks burned brighter at Yugi's previous statement, clearly embarrassed and in Bakura's point of view, amusing yet at the same time displeasing. Yugi buried his pink face in his hands and groaned he realized he was only digging his grave deeper with his babbling. "I am so sorry…" He mumbled from behind his hands.

At this Ryou chuckled, his face still slightly pink but not as much. "It's quite alright, _Yugi_." Ryou said, rolling Yugi's name out the way he did purposely, making the tri-haired boy's face heat up again. Bakura's ears pressed flat against his head, his eyes displaying his complete displeasure with his owner's game. Ryou laughed out loud when Yugi again groaned in embarrassment and buried his face in his hands. "I'm just toying with you, just fun and games, Yugi!" Ryou chuckled, now saying Yugi's name regularly again.

Yugi couldn't help himself when he let out a laugh, also finding their little slip-ups and teasing funny. And he was glad for it, as it made him a heck of a lot calmer then he was when he threw out his subject. After a while the two composed themselves before getting back into their main topic: Who did Yugi like?

Questions roamed through Yugi's head as Ryou sat in front of him, waiting for an answer to his previous question. How could he put this so that Ryou wouldn't think of him as… a weirdo?

Shakily Yugi released a breath that he hadn't known he was holding and looked between Ryou and Bakura before his eyes finally rested on Ryou. "Okay I don't exactly know how to say this, but I want you to take this perfectly calmly and try not to think so awkwardly of me…" The white-haired boy nodded, listening intently, all traces of their previous joking put to the side.

"We both know that I know about your slightly-more-than-an-owners-love-for-a-pet infatuation with Bakura. Actually I know you love him more than that, like one would love their lover." Ryou blushed at this but didn't deny it, in fact he nodded slowly. "It's this way for me too, now…" Yugi mumbled loud enough for his companion to hear.

Ryou's hand absent-mindedly petted Bakura's fur as he processed the information that was given to him. He nodded slowly once again before speaking out, "So you're in love with something you're not really supposed to, too… Is it an animal like Bakura?" Ryou questioned thoughtfully, genuinely intrigued by the turn of events.

Yugi, deciding that his lip had been tortured too much, twiddled his thumbs. His eyes were downcast, as though he had a newfound interest for Ryou's floor. He sighed and shook his head. "That's the funny thing, he isn't an animal… He's… Well he's a toy, doll actually…" Yugi whispered, bracing himself for some sort of ridicule or harassment from the taller boy in front of him. A dreadful silence, for Yugi at least, hung in the air as he awaited his friends' response.

The silence held for a few more dreadful seconds.

"Well this is quite interesting. Tell me more about how it happened." Ryou's sudden response startled poor Yugi, who looked at the white-haired boy in slight shock.

"Y-you don't think that I'm insane or something..?" Yugi asked quietly. Ryou blinked a couple of times before he laughed.

"Why would I think that? Yugi, you're asking that to a guy who fell for his _pet bunny_. Even if I did think that, which I don't, I'd be in absolutely no position to say anything. I'd be a bit of a hypocrite if I did. Plus it is in no way near as awkward as Malik's issue. He seems to have acquired a big crush on… ehem… himself." He stated matter-of-factly with a slight chuckle.

Yugi visibly relaxed and slumped into the wall, laughing a bit as well. He felt like the thousand and a half pound pressure was lifted from his shoulders making him feel light once again. He looked up to his friend, a look of thankfulness and gratefulness glimmering in his eyes. The thanks he felt didn't have to be spoken for the other boy to know how happy the boy felt. Ryou nodded, a smile gracing his features, waiting for Yugi to fill him in on the whole event.

And Yugi did, without granting the boy any escape from any of the details his tale held, not that Ryou was complaining. Though Bakura on the other hand….

"….. And now I'm officially stumped on what to do… I mean when I left, it was like I could feel this tense and saddening atmosphere around Yami and it hurt to just leave him there with her. I want him with me, but I can't risk just taking him away from her, I mean she _adores_ Yami and it would seem heartbreaking to just _take _him away because I'm selfish. But, because I'm selfish like that, I can't just leave him to her, I _want_ him to be with me, I'd be more than happy to have just that way… What do I do, Ryou?" Yugi finished, his head thumping against the wall as he tugged on his multi-colored spikes in exasperation. _What can I do?_ His thoughts raged.

Ryou's eyes were thoughtful, calculating as he went through the information Yugi gave him carefully. His hand shifted through Bakura's fur, lulling the… er… fearsome [?] creature to a small slumber. "This is quite the predicament we have…" He mused quietly. Yugi nodded in response.

"I've thought of as many things as I possibly could. I don't wanna steal. Bribing might cause some sort of issue, since I don't think she'll be able to keep a secret like before. I thought of a tradeoff but, she's only a little girl, so I'm not sure if I'll be giving more then I'm asking for. And she's always had an eye for her dolls, so there is absolutely _no way_ I could simply switch him for another one similar to him; why can't I just wish for him to be with me without any issues!" Yugi rambled childishly, crossing his arms over his chest, huffing out in displeasure.

Ryou nodded, listening to each plan. "Hm…" He hummed, yes quite the predicament indeed. He looked down onto his lap where the less threatening ball of fluff made himself comfortable, his hand ceasing their soothing motion, making said fluff ball look up with an unsaid question hanging in the air. If the bunny had eyebrows one of them would have definitely been raised in both curiosity and slight disbelief at the two's unwillingness to steal. Why if had been the bunny in his owner's place, the doll would have been no problem to get. He was after all, a great thief, a bunny, but a thief nonetheless. The fluff ball heaved an irritated sigh, though a small gleam in his otherwise deep darkened eyes suggested a hint of interest to the situation at hand.

The silence dragged on longer as the two boys sat there in thought while the bunny merely watched as each solution that one suggested was ultimately shot, though at least it was thoroughly discussed first.

The quiet had soon become deafening to the bunny's ears. Not only because he was used to his sweet owner's voice constantly giving him some sort of one-sided conversation to listen to but also because it had become annoying watching the two basically dissolve their brains for one simple plan or two. It was then that the bunny snapped, his annoyance pushing him over his low-tolerance limits.

Bakura heaved his body off of Ryou's lap, catching both boy's attention as he lazily made his way to the conveniently built stepladder that Ryou was oh-so generous enough to make for the mischievous bunny. Lazily, Bakura ascended the steps with a quiet ease before scurrying around the desk for the objects he was currently searching for. Curses ran through his mind as he wasn't human so he could simply _explain_ his plan rather than have to go through a waste of energy just so he could give them a simple idea of what he could not interpret through the human language. Curse Ra for putting such a curse upon the bunny, if only he could somehow just be a human, then so much more could be accomplished!

Finally after little effort, Bakura managed to find the items that he wanted. Using his hind legs, he harshly kicked the objects to the ground below, said items landing with their respective 'thumps'.

Ryou and Yugi were quiet as the bunny descended the stepladder triumphantly and reclaimed his 'rightful' spot on Ryou's lap, only to be picked up.

"Ryou, are you thinking what I'm thinking…?" Yugi asked cautiously. The boy in question nodded ever so slightly.

"And would your thinking lead to your sewing skills and that stuffed bear of hers that you mentioned a while ago?" Ryou questioned, receiving a nod in response. Both heads turned toward the fluff ball in Ryou's arms, eyes glittering with amazement. How had they not come up with such a simple plan?

"You are such a smart bunny, you!" Ryou coed lifting said bunny to his face, in order to rub their noses together. Bakura's foot thumped proudly in the air. Oh the things the bunny could do to this innocent boy, if only he were a human…

Yugi smiled at the exchange, letting Ryou do all the talking to the still-menacing animal. A moment passed before he was acknowledged again. Ryou blushing slightly apologized after he had finished praising and showering Bakura with affection, not that either Yugi or Bakura complained.

"He's really smart…" Yugi mumbled, still slightly amazed at how this animal could come up with a plan that had a better succeeding rate then all the others both boys had thrown out. Slight guilt ate at Yugi however, when a rather pessimistic thought crossed his mind. "I know it's a good plan, and I really don't want to say this but I have to get this out, what if, for some reason it doesn't work?" Yugi asked worriedly. His hands trembled lightly.

Ryou nodded, knowing that even the most brilliant of plans could fail if given the opportunity to. He sighed. "Then you'll have no choice but to take it…" He voiced, unwillingly, regret in his eyes.

"I-I don't know if I'd be able to—" Yugi was cut off.

"I know and that's why if you do it, it'll fail, because you're unwilling, however…" Ryou's eyes looked down at the unsuspecting pet in his arms, "If a certain little thief were to, oh I'm not sure, be let loose 'accidently 'while a friend happened to just stop by for a quick chat…. Who knows what could be taken! Jewelry, plastic plant leaves, maybe even a toy or doll of some sort!" Ryou said innocently, a grin trying to make its presence known on the boys' face. Yugi giggled.

"Oh that would be _terrible_." Yugi snickered a bit, his hand covering his mouth in an attempt to hold his laughter.

So there they stood, both boy's beaming at on another, proud of the progress that they had made. After a while they decided to sit back down and further discuss what to do, the wheels in their heads turning, Ryou from some sort of excitement and Yugi from the urge to retrieve Yami.

"Thanks, Ryou and Bakura." Yugi said as he got up. How long had they spent talking and planning? His arms stretched above his head, taking a peek at the clock he noticed that it was definitely time for him to head home, lest he worry his Grandpa.

Ryou stood up with him, stretching as well before he started making his way down with his friend to the stairs. "No problem and I'm sure Bakura is proud to be of any help." Ryou replied. Bakura twitched, his face had returned to that annoyed-grumpy look it had housed since Yugi had come in. Yugi nodded, thankful of the two.

"Well it'd be a good idea if I leave now; I'll talk to you tomorrow!" Yugi said as he began trotting down the pathway, waving a hand behind him.

"Talk to you tomorrow!" Ryou called back before going back into his house.

Nerves coiled in Yugi's stomach as he felt the anticipation for tomorrow's plan. Was this going to be it? Even now Yugi could feel his heart race for the events that lie in wait for them tomorrow. For some reason he couldn't wait to go to home and just sleep to rest the excitement and anxiety that welled within his stomach…

* * *

**A/N: Okay so this has been chapter seven! It's a bit longer than usual, so I hoped you all enjoyed the read. How was it? Good? Bad? In between? And I apologize if some spots seemed a bit rushed or repetitive. I kind of got a bit carried away with myself, though I tried the hardest I could to keep it interesting!**** Sorry if both Yugi and Ryou seemed a bit OOC…**

**And yes, I couldn't resist putting in that little Heartshipping [Ryou x Yugi] moment; those two are just too adorable for words! The same goes for the small Tendershipping [Bakura x Ryou] moment as well, I just had to give Bakura at least that much satisfaction! xD Such a cute and fluffy bunny he is! *Tosses Bunny Bakura plushies to readers* Enjoy!**

**Next up: Will Yugi succeed with their plan? Until next time! R&R please!**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: YAY! It's time for a new chapter installment! I want to thank everyone who has reviewed, it means so much to me and I was very happy reading them all. THANK YOU! Anyway I'll stop my rant for now. I hope you enjoy the read. Please, as usual, R&R! I also sincerely apologize for the lateness, for some reason this chapter has given me quite a hard time, I felt the need to write and delete constantly, all the while my friend scolding me to get it done and post so that I do not continue to keep my readers waiting. *Whimpers***

_Disclaimer: *Glaring at the stupid note* Can I not just hire someone to say this for me? It pains me very, very much so to say that I do NOT own Yugi-Oh! Nor any of the characters associated with it. If I did, there would be a whole mix of Yaoi between the characters and Tea wouldn't give so many speeches, as … inspiring as they are._

* * *

_For some reason he couldn't wait to go to home and just sleep to rest the excitement and anxiety that welled within his stomach…_

The rest of the day had passed by quickly, Yugi's thoughts all swirling around the plan that he and Ryou revised thanks to Ryou's rabbit, Bakura. Nervousness as well as several other negative and somewhat positive feelings rumbled in his tummy. Finally, wanting to rid himself of whatever nerve-wracking thoughts and feelings that assaulted him, Yugi distracted himself with what came best to him: playing games and solving puzzles.

Much to Yugi's delight it actually did help ease some of the tension that seemed to settle around him. So, that's what he did for the remainder of the day until it was time for him to sleep.

The night passed peacefully, sleep coming easily to the tri-haired teenager. Soon the sun was shining through the window as dawn slowly came to show itself to the area. Yugi shifted from underneath the covers, groaning as the light hit his face and interrupted his sleep.

"No…" His voice, thick with sleep, grumbled as he threw the covers over his head. Sadly the tactic was short lived as his grandfather called him from downstairs.

"Yugi! Wake up; today you have to babysit Yumi! That and it's time for breakfast!" Solomon called. A moment passed as Yugi's mind deciphered the statement his grandfather had just said. Once it was processed, the teen's body shot up from the bed and his head turned to look at the clock that read '11:47' in neon green. Amethyst eyes widened in surprise, when did the morning almost turn to afternoon?

Without much thought Yugi leaped from his bed and almost landed gracefully onto the floor. _Almost_. His foot got caught in the tangle of his bed sheets, tripping the poor boy. A light yelp of surprise escaped Yugi's lips before his body collided with the floor with a _thump_. A moment of silence passed through the air as Yugi collected himself and hoisted his body up, rubbing his head with a groan. '_Note to self: Look before you leap._'

With a shake of the head, Yugi was off to collect whatever necessities he needed for his morning ritual, making sure to answer Grandpa.

About an hour later Yugi was showered, dressed and eating food at the table. "So are you ready to babysit again?" Grandpa casually asked.

Yugi swallowed the food in his mouth before answering, rather nervously, "Yes and no I guess you could say. It's been awhile, Grandpa, what if I mess up? I don't think I could handle the outcomes if I do…" Yugi's voice held a hidden fear as well as double meaning. He wasn't only just talking about taking care of Yumi, what would he do if he messed up with Yami too? Unconsciously his teeth worried his bottom lip.

Solomon clicked his tongue, "Yugi, even if it has been awhile, I'm sure you'll do just as well as you always do. It's rare for you to fail at something and even if you do, you always find a way to turn it around! Now stop worrying, my boy. You'll be late; didn't you say you had permission to take Ryou with you today and that you had some stuff to pick up before you go?" Grandpa asked, raising a gray eyebrow.

Yugi gasped before scarfing the rest of his food down and grabbing the backpack that he had placed by the kitchen the day before. "Thanks for reminding me Grandpa! I'll see you later." He called from over his shoulder as he made his way out the door in a hurry.

Yugi ran as fast as he could to the hobby shop where he was supposed to meet with Ryou. In a matter of a few minutes he was in sight of the hobby shop. Slowing his pace, the tri-haired boy tried to catch his breath as he made his way into the store.

Amethyst eyes scanned the aisles before spotting locks of snow-white hair. "Ryou!" Yugi's voice called out as his small frame, clad in loose, somewhat baggy pants; forest green t-shirt, black vest and sneakers. His backpack hung crookedly on one shoulder as he went to greet his friend.

Ryou turned to face him, a small smile adorning his features. "Yugi! I was beginning to think something happened. I thought you said we'd meet up at 12:30." His brow furrowed slightly.

Yugi raised a hand to rub the back of his neck, "Uh, yeah… I'm really sorry about that, I ended up waking up really late. I don't know how that happened." The shorter boy said with a sheepish grin.

Ryou shook his head, understanding shining in his warm chocolate eyes. "No need to worry about it, you here right now and that's all that matters." The pale boy smiled once more before glancing at the shelves he was previously looking at, which were filled with wooden materials. Brown eyes traveled down into the object held tightly within his grasp.

Confused amethyst eyes followed his friends gaze, discovering that within his friends' hand was a small metal cage and in said cage was a very annoyed bunny. A puzzled expression claimed Yugi's features as he sent a questioning look towards Ryou.

This time it was Ryou's turn to sheepishly grin and scratch the back of his head as he explained, "Well Bakura doesn't particularly like to be left at home when I go out for any specific reasons. Every time I come back home from being out without him he acts up and it takes a few stubborn hours before I can get him to act normally again… Plus I thought it'd be a good idea to take him with us just like we, uh, recently planned... " The snow haired teen finished looking down at the grumpy bunny who sat lazily within the cage, taking in the wondrous sights around him. It was his first time to this so called 'Hobby Shop'.

Yugi stayed silent for a moment, assessing Ryou's explanation before shrugging it off and turning to walk to a different aisle, "Hopefully it wouldn't have to resort to that method." Yugi muttered as he calmly walked to the sewing shelves and contemplated the many color threads he would need before setting off to do his task.

Minutes passed before he was joined by Ryou who had a nice basket filled with wooden materials as well as odd items like googly eyes, glues, even odd fabrics that were in a rainbow of different colors. "Almost done yet? It's almost time for us to go and I don't quite fancy the idea of being late to meet new people…" He said only to be backed be the slight thumping of the silver-ish snow white rabbit in the cage he held.

Yugi looked over his items and took a small moment of contemplation before he nodded. "Yeah I'm about done." With that both teens and rabbit headed to the register to pay.

After paying the two were almost out of the door when a female cashier called out to them. "Excuse me Huns." The two looked at one another before turning to look at the female who had shoulder length blue-black hair and turquoise eyes, having been used to being called 'Hun' and such.

"Yes?" They answered in unison politely and curiously, making the female blush lightly at their cuteness.

She quietly cleared her throat, seeing as they had yet to notice the predicament they would have been caught up in. "Your pet seems to have found a nice possession and I don't remember it being rung up." She stated, rather bluntly causing Yugi and Ryou to look at one another confusedly before Ryou brought up the cage to be inspected by both teens.

And they confirmed that Bakura was definitely holding onto a store item that they had not noticed picking up before. Bakura looked between Ryou and Yugi, feigned innocence shining within his dark brown eyes. His furry paws attempted to push the item, a carefully made ring with a nice stone, under the folds of his fur. His attempt was all in vain as Ryou shoot him an annoyed and exasperated look.

"Bakura! Not _again_!" The taller of the two males huffed, scolding his bunny as his hand reached into the cage to retrieve the ring. The bunny sniffed the air as his foot thumped the floor of the cage in protest, eyes shining with annoyance. Yugi couldn't help but laugh at the situation the bunny had put the two into.

"I suppose this happens a lot?" Yugi asked, already knowing the answer. Ryou sighed in reply shooting Yugi a look that screamed, 'You-wouldn't-believe-how-much'.

"I'm so sorry. I don't even know how he got it this time." Ryou apologized as he handed the ring to the female. She held out a hand to accept the item as her other hand was held up, willing him to say nothing else.

"It's no problem, dear; just trying to keep you two cuties out of trouble." She winked as both Yugi and Ryou's cheeks tinted a very light pink. Ryou walked back to Yugi as they said 'thank you' to the female cashier and out they went, making way to the Tenshi's household.

Minutes had passed before the three made it to their destination. Ryou looked somewhat nervous even as Yugi attempted to reassure the taller male. Reaching out a hand, Yugi knocked on the door and waited till the door swung open to reveal a cheery Mrs. Tenshi.

"Oh! Yugi, right on time as usual!" She beamed before her eyes caught onto the boy beside their hired babysitter. "And this must be… Ryou! Such a handsome young man" She exclaimed taking a quick pause before she assessed Ryou's gender, "And his bunny, Bakura. Yumi will be so happy to see a bunny! You're always thinking ahead Yugi." The woman chattered, both teens nodding politely, seeing as there was no need for them to completely respond with words. Mrs. Tenshi gasped for a moment, "Oh dear, where are my manners? Come in, come in! Make yourselves right at home, my husband and I was just finishing any last minute things to do." She opened the door wider to allow the two boys into her abode.

Yugi and Ryou quietly thanked her before entering the house and headed over to the table to sit down at. "Yugi! So glad you could do this for us today, we really appreciate it. And this must be your friend that you called us about. Nice to meet you, I'm Mr. Tenshi." The elder male greeted as he walked into the dining room. He stuck out his hand, which Ryou took and shook.

"Nice to meet you, sir. I'm Ryou. Thank you for having me over today!" The British boy said with a smile.

"No problem, you look like a good kid."

Yugi's eyes wandered around, looking and searching for the small doll which earned his adoration. However it was all in vain, meaning Yumi still probably had him in her hands. Their bags went unnoticed by the two adult's which struck him as odd, since both were usually attentive to detail. Maybe this thing really was a big deal…

"Well it's almost time for us to be going. I'll call down Yumi." Mrs. Tenshi broke Yugi out of his thoughts. "Yumi! Yugi is here and he has a surprise!" The woman called, maybe she did she what they had brought with them…

As a response to being called, Yumi came down the steps as quickly as the young girl could. "Yugi!" The young girl squeaked out when she caught sight of said boy, Yami in hand. At the sound of Yugi's name, Yami's little button heart sped up and his plastic eyes gleamed more. Yugi had come back!

Yumi attached herself to Yugi's pants leg squealing happily, taking absolutely no notice whatsoever to Ryou nor bunny Bakura.

"Look at the time!" A gasp came from Mrs. Tenshi suddenly, drawing attention to herself. "Dear it's about time we get going! Yumi mommy and daddy will be back in a while. Make sure to be a good girl while Yugi and Ryou take care of you." Yumi nodded obediently though confusion shined within her child eyes, who was Ryou? Her little eyes wandered over to the extra figures in the room, taking in the sight of the white haired boy. Was this Ryou? This feminine looking boy with the bunny?

After taking in the sight of the animal, Yumi dropped all thoughts, letting out a high-pitched squeal of delight. "Bunny!" Her voice sang.

"Yes a bunny. If you're a good girl I'm sure Ryou would let you play with it. Now come give us our farewells-till-later." Mrs. Tenshi said, again the small girl obeyed and waddled over to her parents for a hug and kiss before the two went out the door, bidding the three a hardy 'see you later'.

"Yugi!" Yumi called as she came back to the two older boys, Yami in tow. Poor Yami, his little clothed arm ached from the mistreatment of this girl and her 'love'.

"Yes, Yumi?" Yugi asked, knowing very well what the young girl was about to ask.

"What are we going to do today?" She asked, eyes shining with excitement as they very obviously wondered to take in the sight of Bakura every once in a while. She had also seen the craft bags, meaning that they were going to make something as well as play with a bunny. What could be any better than this?

Yugi bit back a small cry of guilt as he took in the expression of the young girl. He could just tell it was going to be an issue in separating her from Yami then and there. She was excited, yes, however she was so excited that poor Yami seemed to be- and was- suffocating under the hold.

Would he really be able to pull this off? The thought ran through his head in hundreds of sentences as he glanced over to Ryou, who gave him a look of reassurance as well as slight fear for Bakura. It seemed that it had to be today or never…

* * *

**A/N: And that's all for now! How was it? Good? Bad? In between? I'm so sorry for the lateness of it, I just couldn't seem to write much for this chapter and ended with this. It could be that this story is slowly coming to it's end, with the fact that I've grown to really like this story as I've written it.**

**Either way, I hope you've enjoyed this chapter! Thank you for reading and please R&R!**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: I'm so sorry everyone! There shouldn't be an excuse for my lack of updating. I've been rather busy with schoolwork, personal issues as well as a writer's block period of time, which prevented me from writing anything. I apologize sincerely for those of you waiting for so long. Here's a new installment of "He's the One". Thank you to everyone who has been reviewing, I really appreciate it! As per usual, please enjoy and R&R! Thank you!**

_DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN YUGI-OH! Oh how saddening it is for me to say so… _

* * *

_Would he really be able to pull this off? The thought ran through his head in hundreds of sentences as he glanced over to Ryou, who gave him a look of reassurance as well as slight fear for Bakura. It seemed that it had to be today or never…_

Yumi's eyes shone with excitement as she waited for Yugi to say what they were to do first. Yugi could feel a shiver of more guilt crawl slowly up his spine as he looked between both the doll who held his affections and the young girl who adored him like he was her own brother. His eyes stung with tears that threatened to spill as he gave Yumi one of his best smiles, trying to make it as genuine as he could.

Ryou watched his friend sympathetically. He didn't have it so hard when he had met Bakura, so why did Yugi have to struggle so much when it came to this doll? Briefly the white haired boy wondered if their dear friend Malik had any personal issues with himself as well, though he quickly brushed the thought away for another time.

Ryou's eyes trailed over to his kleptomaniac of a bunny who thumped his leg against the cage floor ever so softly. The bunny's eyes were focused on… Glaring, laughing even, at the doll in Yumi's arms, that had yet to take in anyone but Yugi's presence and the strangling hold the demon of a young girl held him in.

Yugi let out a shaky breath as he clapped his hands together and looked over to his British friend. "Well Yumi we got a lot of things we can do today, like play with a bunny and I brought some stuff from the craft shop earlier so we can even make twisty tie figures with eyes and so on." Yugi babbled nervously, though only Ryou really took in the tone of his friend, giving him another reassuring smile.

Yumi beamed yet again as her small body bounced up and down, ready to play and be creative. Luckily for Yami, her grip on him had loosened enough for him to actually be slightly comfortable… Slightly. Yugi let out a sigh of relief as he saw a familiar shine in the dolls eyes come to life again. He smiled with more ease this time, much to Ryou's relief.

Yami gazed at Yugi, elated to see the boy once again. Had he come to get him this time? The doll couldn't help but to hope that that was the case. His little button eyes shone with a tiny light. However something felt weird to the little doll as he reluctantly took his eyes off the larger tri-haired boy to survey his surroundings. As he looked around his small cloth made ears picked up a faint thumping sound that seemed to get louder with each passing second. What in the name of Ra was that sound? His eyes picked up the sight of another boy with silvery white hair and liquid brown eyes. Was that the boy who had come in earlier with Yugi? Yami shrugged it off, figuring he would deal with it later as he continued to look for the source of the sound. He didn't have to look much farther when button eyes met with glaring, laughing eyes of a large bunny thumping his leg.

Bakura had been thumping his leg against the cage floor again, calling more attention to himself this time, something that he seemed to want to happen. The white bunny twitched his nose in satisfaction as his eyes met with confused yet upset button ones. Internally the bunny smirked. A doll? The great pharaoh had this curse really bad if that was the form he had been given. Bakura pointed his nose in the air, giving off a view of his teeth as he squeaked in laughter.

If Yami could move, his eye would have twitched. How DARE that thief of a bunny laugh at him. Had he looked at himself in the mirror since he had been put under the spell? Yami wasn't the only one who had it bad…

Ryou and Yugi watched the small exchange curiously. Bakura was… laughing at a… upset Yami? The two boys exchanged an awkward, confused glance. Was it weirder that they could read these emotions or the fact that something compelled them to actually realize that this was going on? They shook it off, choosing to ignore it for the moment and turn their attention to the surprisingly still bouncing girl.

Yugi laughed as he reached a hand out to ruffle Yumi's hair. She squealed with laughter at the action, causing her to hold onto Yami just a tad bit tighter.

"Alright, Yumi, what do you want to do first? Play, eat or create?" Yugi asked, tilting his head to the side as he waited the girl's response.

Yumi tapped a finger to her cheek, thinking seriously, much to the two older boy's amusement. Finally she threw her hand up. "I know! Bunny! Yumi wants to play with Bunny!" She squealed, looking at Bakura with an almost predatory look. The bunny took a step back, his fur rising along his spine. The doll's eyes shone with smug amusement at the bunny's expanse. A silent snicker filled his stuffing, cloth covered body,

Ryou was panicking quite a bit and he looked quickly between both Bakura and Yugi. Did she HAVE to choose to play with Bakura so early? The British boy wrung his hands in his lap nervously as he tried to calm his panic. Bakura's ears went back, said bunny wishing he had at least the ability to hiss, both at the infernal little girl and that darn laughing doll!

Yugi looked sympathetically at Ryou, giving his friend a moment to recompose himself. Bakura meant a lot to Ryou and if anything were to happen to him… Well the poor boy to say the least would more than likely suffer a heart attack. Finally after a few breathes Ryou looked to Yugi and nodded his head okay. Yugi smiled at him in thanks before taking the young girls hand and walking towards the cage.

As this went on, Ryou worked on unlocking and taking his bunny out of his cage, holding him in his lap after the deed was done. Yugi released Yumi's hand when they stood in front of Bakura and Ryou. He knelt down to look her in the eye. "Now Yumi, I want you to promise me to be EXTRA careful while playing with Bakura. He's really special to Ryou and he's also a living being. We wouldn't want to hurt him now do we?"

Yumi took in what Yugi said, mulling it over in her mind carefully before nodding slowly. "Okay Yugi!" She beamed up at him before facing Ryou. "Can I play with your bunny please, Ry-ou?" Yumi said cutely, tripping over Ryou's name. Ryou couldn't help but smile at the girl before looking down at Bakura. The bunny stared back at his owner, demanding in his eyes. Ryou wouldn't dare hand him over to that infernal demon of a girl… Would he? Before he knew it, Bakura was being picked up from his spot on Ryou's lap and handed to said demon girl.

"Please be careful with him. His name is Bakura." Ryou said gently, smiling at the girl, though his eyes held a shine of unease as he was handing Bakura to Yumi.

"Wait Ryou." Yugi said before Yumi attempted to hold Bakura. "Yumi, you have to put Yami down if you want to hold Bakura. Here let me hold him" Yugi said, putting his hand down. Yumi enthusiastically nodded her head, plopping Yami down into Yugi's hand and immediately setting her sights on the bunny before her. Yugi smiled down at the doll in his hands, after near gasping at his bad treatment. Gingerly he placed Yami on his shoulder, in a way that he wouldn't fall if Yugi were to move.

Yumi reached out towards Ryou, her smile wide as she felt the animal's fur on her palms. "Baka!" She squealed as she held Bakura for the first time. Yugi's eyes widened along with Ryou's as they assessed what the young girl had said. Yumi held Bakura in her arms like a baby, much to said bunny's chagrin. Yumi twirled around to face Yugi, almost causing Ryou to have a panic attack at the action. "Yugi! Baka' so cute!" Yumi squealed, making Bakura flinch from the noise. She was near his blasted ear for Ra sake!

Yugi couldn't suppress a giggle that slipped from between his lips at the nickname, Ryou eventually doing the same. Yumi looked between the elder boys, a look of adorable confusion on her face as she tried to figure out what she had done that caused them to laugh. This passed however, a large smile gracing her features as she figured that it wasn't a bad reaction.

Yami was laughing internally as well, though more mockingly, much to a fuming bunny's humility. Oh how the doll wished he could at least voice his amusement to the bunny being put into such an embarrassing position, though he had to admit, it was thanks to that darn thief of a bunny that he was able to be so close to his Yugi…

Slowly time passed, taking the day with it soon enough. The trio of humans had done a large amount of fun things that made the young girl being baby-sat laugh. The two older males even partook in some of the laughter themselves, all the while Yami and Bakura both trying to find reason to laugh at the others' humility when given the chance.

However, Yugi could not help but be reminded of the guilt that plagued his mind whenever he thought of the plan at hand. It didn't help that the day was nearing its end, even as the tri-haired boy sat at the kitchen table fixing the dolls that were brought to ruin by the young girl currently attempting to dress Bakura in a frilly pink hat and dress. Yami had remained within his sight most of the day, which delighted him to the point it sometimes eased his negative feelings, but each time he saw the young girl hug said doll, it brought not only a small amount of jealousy, but made him think about what he was doing. Could he actually continue through with this plan, knowing he may be taking a bit of happiness away from the girl…?

It was this thought that haunted Yugi the most.

As he continued with his stitching, he failed to notice as his white-haired companion took a seat beside him, Yumi within sight as well as Bakura and Yami, both of whom refused to take their eyes off one another or their respective objects of affection.

"Yugi, are you alright?" The British boy asked softly, startling the boy in question.

"Ryou! You startled me!" Yugi pouted; face slightly tinted pink from the embarrassment at being caught off guard, though it was short lived as he sighed. "But… to answer your question… I'm worried about…. Y'know…" Yugi hinted with his eyes though Ryou had already understood his friend's meaning. Ryou nodded in response.

"I understand but… This is something you want, is it not? I only want to see you happy Yugi, so if going through with it does, I'll stick by you till the end. But if it haunts you so badly, it's alright to say so and… Leave it be, I suppose. You can find other ways, but you'll find that you have right to be happy too. And that's all I really care about Yugi, your being happy." Ryou explained this to his friend, as he did so his hand had stretched out to touch Yugi's arm lightly, making said boy blush slightly and tear up just a bit.

"Ryou…" Yugi mumbled, his free hand swiping at his eyes to cleanse them of any moisture. "You're too nice sometimes." The smaller boy laughed a bit, though he ached in his heart, mind unconsciously thinking thoroughly about the plan. Ryou laughed.

"You're a dear person Yugi, and I can't help it, I know you would say the same to me if it were me instead."

The two boys sat in a comfortable silence, though they were being watched. Yami seethed, unhappy by the sight of Yugi seeming to cry and by that hand which was touching him. Yami didn't like it one bit, nor did Bakura. Ryou was too close to the tri-haired boy he now considered a 'brat' and Yugi's reactions weren't something to be too happy about either. His leg thumped harshly against the floor to sound out his displeasure. Bakura was not amused.

Luckily for the two however, Ryou seemed to hear Bakura's foot thumps and moved away from Yugi to focus his attention on Bakura, much to said bunny's smug contentment. Yugi wiped at his eyes a bit more before continuing with his original task as Ryou entertained Yumi. Again time ticked by slowly, but it was nowhere near slow as soon it came time for the two boys to begin packing their belongings as Mr. and Mrs. Tenshi informed them, through a phone call, that they were to be back within a five minute time frame.

By this time, Yumi had been witness to Yugi's handiwork as she was quite delighted to see that many of the dolls she was unable to play with before were now in a suitable playing condition once more. She had squealed an excited 'Thank you' to Yugi as she held the doll he had gifted her with some time back. It made Yugi feel good that he was able to make her so happy, but the plan to steal Yami had never left his mind…

Yami sat upright, leaning against a cup the young imp of a child had placed him by. He had been finally given a break to enjoy not being squished painfully by Yumi as she paid attention to other dolls of an assorted variety. Yugi was right beside him the entire time, as they both watched her, Yugi engrossed with his thoughts and Yami simply pleased to be in the presence of Yugi, though he secretly hoped, desperately that today would be his last day with the demon child. Yugi had to have come for him… Right?

Slight panic surged within the doll's stuffing for a moment as the possibility of being separated from Yugi once again worried Yami…

The sound of a gate being opened resounded within the house, catching everyone's attention. Yugi was thrown out of his thoughts as Ryou began to put Bakura away and Yumi was running in circles, inching toward the front door.

It was now or never for Yugi to make the decision…

Quickly yet gently, Yugi reached for Yami and hid him within a roomy pocket of his hoodie sweater. This eased the doll's worry significantly and raised his hopes; he could feel it throughout his stuffing filled body.

"You ready?" Ryou asked, directing the question towards his friend. All his belongings had been checked and packed. Yugi hesitantly nodded and stepped forward to stand next to his friend before both began heading towards the front door, which was now being unlocked. Yumi took a moment to totter behind them, an unknown confusion within her as her eyes wandered as if searching for something.

The door opened revealing Yumi's parents just as Ryou and Yugi reached the front room. "Yugi, thank you and your friend so much for watching Yumi." Mrs. Tenshi said gratefully after greeting the two boys. Mr. Tenshi nodded in agreement as he stepped in beside his wife. Yumi tottered into the room just then.

"Mommy, Daddy! You're here." The young girl greeted, "Yumi was a good girl!" which earned two nods of agreement. With that both Yugi and Ryou bowed, as they made their way to leave, but was quickly stopped. "Yugi… Have you seen Yami? I don't see him.." Yumi called out, sounding severely troubled.

Yugi's heart beat halted for a moment before it's pace picked up twice as fast. Ryou had sent a panicked look toward the smaller boy, wondering what he was going to do.

A moment passed as Yugi contemplated what he should do. Guilt flooded him, worse than before as he thought over his possibilities. He was suddenly brought out by Mrs. Tenshi's voice. "Yugi, I'm so sorry but would you mind helping us to look around for it?"

Yugi gulped, passing Ryou a look before he slowly turned around, fixing his face with as real of a smile he could conjure up, before answering, "Of course Mrs. Tenshi." With that said, Yugi walked back into the house and helped them look for a while.

By this time Yugi had come up with various scenarios and was on the verge of panic. Yumi on the other hand was close to tears. "Mommy, I want Yami…" Her chocked up voice forced out, breaking Yugi's heart and filling him with even more guilt if that was even possible.

"I'm so sorry honey… But he doesn't seem to be anywhere. But you have so many others and Yugi fixed a lot of them too, so you have even more to play with now!" Mr. Tenshi had stepped in, attempting to cheer up his only daughter. However Yumi simply shook her head, a rough look painting her face.

Her tiny hands swiped at her eyes as tears began to stream down her face, though she said nothing, rather choosing to simply nod her head and walk away dejectedly. Mr. and Mrs. Tenshi shot each other worried looks before looking at Yugi. "I'm so sorry for making you stay longer Yugi." Mrs. Tenshi said, a partial smile on her face to express her gratitude.

By this time, Yugi had been beaten. He was over flooding with guilt and on the verge of tears himself. How could he have caused this? Nodding he began to walk away before discreetly pulling a surprised Yami out of his pocket.

Yami was confused, why were they still within this infernal house? Why did Yugi take him out of his pocket? What was going on? Dark button eyes scanned the area before coming to look up at Yugi's face which immediately made his button heart ache in despair. Yugi had a pure look of anguish written all over his features, something which troubled Yami greatly. But what was worse was the look in Yugi's now dulled eyes, which made Yami both scared yet the doll understood. Although it pained him to do so, he resigned himself to whatever it was Yugi decided to do, but he sent out reassuring vibes, in hopes of easing the boy. There was no way Yami could ever bring himself to hate Yugi, despite his actions…

Yugi looked down at Yami, staring at him painfully. Although he could FEEL the reassuring vibes that Yami seemed to be sending him, he still felt terrible for what he was about to do. Taking in a deep breath to both calm himself as well as to hold back his tears, Yugi spoke, uncaring of whoever may have heard him, "I'm so sorry Yami… I thought, I thought I could do something for us… But, it seems I just can't. I'm so sorry; please don't hate me for this… I care for you deeply but, I can't do this to her…"

Feeling the waves of understanding, Yugi bent down, briefly placing Yami on the ground before once again picking him up. He stood and took another breath to compose himself before turning around. "Yumi!" He called, "Look who I found!"

Rushing footsteps could be heard a moment later and soon Yumi was stumbling into the room. "Yami?" Her voice cracked as she reached Yugi. Yugi nodded and bent down to give Yami to her, albeit reluctantly. The young girl gasped before snatching Yami up and hugging him tightly to her, murmuring out various forms of thanks to Yugi. Yugi simply nodded to them all as he watched her.

"I'm leaving now… Yumi… Just promise me… Promise me you'll take really good care of him and that he doesn't get hurt…" Yugi whispered, leaving before he got an answered.

When he got out of the house, Ryou was right there for him. "You did well." was all the albino said as they both walked home.

That night, Yugi cried without sleep…

* * *

**A/N: Okay so there you have it, the ninth installment of "He's the One". I hope you all enjoyed. I feel as though my style of writing has changed somewhat within this part, especially towards the middle since originally I had half of this written before having to put it down for quite some time... For those of you who reviewed/ Favorited/ alerted this story thank you! Was it good? Bad? In between? Please R&R!**

**I deeply apologize for the wait, but now that summer has rolled around I SHOULD be able to finish things a bit more, though I cannot make any completely definite promises, I do apologize... But please don't lose faith. It shall be completed.  
**

**Also, I would like to acknowledge the fact that this story, which I have come to adore as it went on, shall very soon be coming to an end. Either the next chapter or perhaps the one after it, should be the last chapter which wraps up this 's kind of sad, but I'm happy for it in the long run... Thank you and until next time.  
**


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Yes, I know, it's been a VERY long time since I've tended to any of my stories here. I really do apologize sincerely for the long wait that you all have had to endure due to my lack of updates and announcements. I won't be surprised if many of you have begun to care less for these stories due to that… Many things have come up though I won't say what exactly. I simply hope that you can forgive me for the wait. I appreciate the continued support for this story and honestly thank everyone for their reviews and feedback. When I first started this story I never thought it would get such great results with readers, so truly thank you! Now without further ado, I present you all with the latest installment of "He's the One"!  
**

_DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN YUGI-OH! In any way shape or form as sad as that makes me…_

* * *

_"I'm leaving now… Yumi… Just promise me… Promise me you'll take really good care of him and that he doesn't get hurt…" Yugi whispered, leaving before he got an answered._

_When he got out of the house, Ryou was right there for him. "You did well." was all the albino said as they both walked home._

_That night, Yugi cried without sleep…_

It hurt. Really bad. Who would have guessed it would hurt so darn much?

His small form clutched a spare pillow to his chest, tightly. A sigh, one filled with heartache and confliction, passed through his lips. Yugi rolled on his bed, now facing the wall.

"You did the right thing…" The near-silent murmur passed through his lips, repeating itself over and over. He was trying so hard to convince himself that leaving Yami to Yumi was the right thing… So why did he feel so WRONG about it..?

The once bright amethyst eyes, now dulled and reddened from nonstop crying, opened to stare at his wall before squeezing shut again. "It was the right decision, there's nothing to feel so bad about." He continued to try to convince himself.

_If it was so right then why must you regret it so badly? If it was so right then there'd be nothing to tear yourself up about then._ A small voice in the back of his head countered. It frustrated Yugi so much, as he tried to ignore the insistent little voice that kept dragging him back down to the start. It threw points at him that he just couldn't deny… But he had to try.

Yugi let go of Yami, he gave him up so that Yumi would be happy. Yumi was young… Sure she would experience the loss of things she considered precious as she grew up, but that was the point. Why make her experience something like that at such a young age when Yugi knew well enough he was able to prevent it?

Call him too nice. Call him stupid. But, Yugi knew well enough what it was like to really lose things so dear to him at a young age. It killed him inside to see a person hurt like that…

The room was still, cloaked in darkness although, the day had long already begun. He lied motionless on his bed, lost in his deep thoughts. He'd finished all the tears he could spare; all that was left was a shell from what he was the day prior before the incident.

Who knew it hurt so much, the feeling of possibly never being able to hold the object of your affections and being able to honestly say they belonged to you alone?

He adjusted himself on his bed once, tired and fed up with his internal argument. With eyes shut tightly, he sighed again, allowing himself to finally succumb to a light sleep.

* * *

The phone rang.

He shifted, but didn't move.

It rang again.

He groaned. Who could have been calling?! Whoever it was, it couldn't have been that important, so he let it be.

It kept ringing.

And ringing.

And ringing…

Finally with an uncharacteristically irritable huff, he climbed out of his bed and stormed to where the phone was located in the house.

"Hello?" He replied, annoyed.

"Oh… Well hello to you, too. Didn't think that I deserved that much of a huff from yesterday…" The distorted voice of Ryou sounded from the device.

"Oh… Sorry Ryou, I didn't mean to… It's just that I… Well… You know." The tri-haired boy replied guiltily, earning a small chuckle from the other.

"Quite alright, I understand that yesterday had given you a bit of a shock. It happens to the best of us… But you can't keep down about it… Think positive, like the usual you. You might just get another chance, you never know.."

Yugi nodded halfheartedly, not really acknowledging the fact that the albino couldn't see the action. He answered the phone with a low "Thank you" before allowing the other to continue speaking.

Quite a bit a time had passed by the time Yugi was able to finally put down the phone. A slight smile graced his features as he shook his head. He was glad to have friends like Ryou, who simply cared about his wellbeing. The small boy went to stretch his arms, big eyes glancing at the time before heading back to get some more rest. It was already too late to go out, tomorrow was another day.

The night passed quickly, soon sunrays were peeking through Yugi's curtains, alerting the boy to a new day. His small form rolled away in an attempt to escape the bright shine, only to result in an accidental off-bed roll.

"Ow… Alright you win, I'm up, Yugi is up." Said boy groggily said to no one in particular. His body rose, tossing the cover that fell along with him to the bed. From there he began his usual get-ready routine, after all Ryou and Malik had threatened his future sanity, yesterday, if he didn't get out and hang out with them.

In a matter of no time, Yugi was heading out the door. "See you later, Grandpa!" he waved at the elder man, trying to give him the best smile he could muster.

Grandpa waved back, "Have fun, my boy! Don't come back too late! Feel better, Yugi…" The last sentence was muttered to himself as the younger boy was already out of sight.

The walk to the meeting place the three of them agreed didn't take as much time as Yugi had hoped. He wanted to have a little bit to compose himself and continue with his thoughts from yesterday. Small hands tightened slightly around the straps of his backpack as he closed in on the place. _Just take a breath. _

"Yugi!" A familiar voice called out to him, immediately followed by a close tackle.

The tri-haired boy chuckled, returning the hug. "Malik, is that you? It's been a millennia! Your hair… Is it going white?!" He attempted to joke, earning a gasp from the platinum blonde and a "Hey!" from the albino who was walking towards the duo.

"I'm offended, you little twerp. And what about you? I seen you've shrunk since I last saw you." Malik jokingly retaliated, successfully getting Yugi to pout.

"I'm not that short…."

The playful banter continued, Ryou joyfully observing Yugi's spirits lifting somewhat thanks to Malik's constant teasing. Ryou hadn't liked the obvious depression that seeped through his receiver as he spoke with the shorter male the other day. It had been obvious to him that although new, that depression needed to be nipped in the bud before it got out of their hands. He had a feeling it would be like that before he even called so, in preparation, Ryou had relayed the prior events and situation to Malik, the finisher of their close trio. Hearing the story, Malik had taken it pretty well and even, in some miraculous way, related to it and agreed to help their dear friend as much as he could. The two drew up several plans to try to help Yugi- a majority dealing with criminal acts- but, finally they figured the best way would just be to show their pal that they were right by his side and understood his feelings.

So, that's exactly what their here for today. In a small café… Bickering even more now while being slightly disheveled in appearance…. _What the world happened in the short moment I was relaying yesterday's events….?_ The white haired boy thought as he watched, amazed, as the two boys he accompanied went at it. People stared. The waitress who came over, attempting to flirt and take their orders eventually stared. Even the people passing by from outside, stared at them through the window.

And it just continued… Until finally all the albino could do was laugh at the ridiculous antics. Yugi and Malik paused for a moment, completely confused as to why their friend was laughing so hard. That is until the two took a good look at themselves. Malik erupted into laughter while Yugi offered some of his own little chuckles to the batch.

"I'm so sorry, Ryou." Yugi said once their bouts of laughter wore off and they all cooled down.

Ryou waved him off, quietly observing Yugi. "Quite alright, I'm used to it by now." His reply caused both Yugi and Malik to blush sheepishly and shrug. Ryou took a shot. "It's good to see you in better spirits then the other day though, Yugi…"

Yugi's reply caused his companions to wince however. His face visibly paled, his earlier smile wiped clean off to be replaced with a cheap knock-off. "Yea… I guess you're right." Yugi attempted to reply happily but couldn't find the will for it. Malik bumped Ryou, shooting him an upset look, but all Ryou could do was shrug slightly in vain.

An awkward silence befell the trio quickly after that. It was unwanted and very uncomfortable. But what could they do when Yugi was still mourning the too recent loss?

Too soon, they were heading out of the café and towards Ryou's house to relax. The two weren't willing to let Yugi go home and be alone just yet. Yugi wasn't too sure if being in a dark room to battle it out with his conflicting emotions was what he wanted either.

Truth be told, the recent negative feelings came too fast and too soon for the boy to make sense of, even though it might have been over a situation most would think ridiculously of. Yugi knew what he felt; very strong and sure feelings albeit for a doll, but the feelings were there nonetheless.

A sigh passed through his lips as his body slid to the carpet of Ryou's room. He hadn't even noticed when they got there. How long had he been there without noticing? He internally shrugged, slipping the backpack off his shoulders. His head shook to clear his mind of invading thoughts. If he was going to lounge around, he might as well just continue on that puzzle while they were doing so.

"You're still working on that thing, Yugi?" Malik asked, sliding to floor on his right, taking notice of the familiar golden pieces. Yugi simply hummed in agreement in response.

"How long has it been since you started it? I mean it seems like you've gotten quite far with it since the last time it's graced our presence." Ryou took a seat on Yugi's left, holding onto his bunny, Bakura. The bunny was disinterested in everything around him except for his adorable owner that is, until his dark eyes caught sight of the gleaming puzzle pieces. Bakura wormed his way off of Ryou's lap and hopped towards a stray piece to sniff it. A white furry paw reached out to roll the piece around which eventually resulted in an overturned furry heap on the floor.

Ryou reached for the piece his bunny somehow managed to ungracefully slip on, rolling it around between his fingers before placing Bakura back in his lap. "Silly bunny…" Ryou nuzzled his little companion before placing the golden piece in a random space on the puzzle. "Does that go there?" He inquired, watching as Yugi rotated the piece in its place to make it fit.

"Seems it does." Yugi smiled, watching Malik attempt the same with another piece only for it to fall into its proper place, by some luck.

"Hah! Skills." Malik gloated, poking the bunny who, seemed to glare annoyingly at the blonde boy. "Ryoooou… Your rabbit is grumpy again… And biting my finger again! I'm not a carrot, Bakura!" Malik's voice rose a pitch as the boy gingerly held his finger, pretending to hide behind Yugi 'for protection'.

"Serves you right, Malik." Ryou giggled, secretly petting his bunny for the act. Bakura simply thumped his foot against the nearby floor and proceeded to snooze off.

A comfortable silence rose within the room, the albino and blonde, lost in their own thoughts about their friend as well as their own personal predicaments. The only sound that resonated in the room was the clicking and connecting of the golden puzzle pieces. Malik seemed to mimic the devil bunny's actions, dozing off in a rather comical position. Every so often Yugi would hum in approval or huff in frustration depending on how the puzzle put together. Next to him Ryou stared longingly at his sleeping bunny, petting the coarse yet surprisingly soft fur. Internally each of them sighed simultaneously with only one single thought passing through each of their minds.

_Why can't we just have a chance…?_

Time crept slowly along after that, not much getting done except for relaxing the day away. It was quiet for a long time until finally someone spoke up.

"Guys, look."Yugi said, a hint of triumph within his voice. Malik and Ryou both shifted to look at what the smaller boy had offered their sights. Brown and lavender eyes both widened at it. The puzzle was nearly completed, with the exception of one missing piece.

"Woah…" Malik was at a loss for words.

On the contrary Ryou seemed to be entirely fascinated. "Amazing, Yugi. Look at that shape, how does it hold together without collapsing? More importantly, aren't you going to finish it? There's only one more piece." He gushed, stating the obvious.

A small pale hand reached up to scratch the back of his neck. Yugi sheepishly laughed. "Funny you asked, I can't seem to find it, I was so sure I had every piece in the box. It couldn't be far…"

Immediately after that statement, all eyes travelled to the seemingly innocent bunny who was now scratching behind his ear. Ryou sighed, picking Bakura up from under his front arms. "Alright, you. Where did you put it?"

Bakura put up a good staring contest for a while, the tension in the room becoming very obvious, until Malik interrupted, snatching the bunny away from a very surprised Ryou.

"Spill it Bakura. Where'd your fuzzy rump hide the piece? Yugi's been working a long time on it, don't play like this now." Malik attempted to intimidate Bakura. Sadly all he gained from that was a wet mark on his pants leg… "Darn, rabbit…" Malik grumbled, quickly passing Bakura back and heading to the bathroom to wash off his jeans.

"It can't be too far… Maybe he had it under him?" Yugi inquired, taking a random shot after a moment of thought. Sure enough, after Ryou shifted his legs, there it was, a golden eye piece staring out to those who looked. Malik came back in soon after, swiping it from the albino boy to inspect.

Ryou huffed at the blonde's impatience. Yugi simply nodded in relief at finding the piece, holding a hand out to receive it. The eye was dropped into the small boy's palm moments later.

"You know… I've been working on this for the longest, and you guys have helped on multiple occasions, even if it was encouraging me to continue on with it or attempting to fix it with me. My grandpa gave this to me after he went on an expedition in Egypt. He told me that by finishing the puzzle one day, it'll grant a wish to who completes it." Yugi stared at the piece in his hand, before raising his amethyst gaze to his two closest friends.

"I always wondered if it would actually happen, what I'd want to wish for and whatnot. But I've always gotten discouraged when it wouldn't work out, but you guys would push me saying, 'Go for it', even when others said it was too childish. So… I want you guys to help me finish it. Will you?" The small boy smiled at his two closest companions. The two who seemed to understand him best when it came to things he couldn't just say to others. He wanted to share this with them, they deserved the chance.

The blonde and albino exchanged looks before both smiling at their buddy. "Of course!" They replied in unison, both taking hold of a small portion of the piece.

Upon simply holding the eye piece, all three of them felt a rising anticipation. Would the puzzle actually grant a wish? What would happen afterwards? Would their wish actually be granted? So many questions ran through their minds, causing them to become nervous, but they proceeded along either way.

Slowly.

The piece inched towards the remaining opening.

The space seemed to be closing in, each boy holding their breath as finally the piece was aligned.

Then, they pushed the golden eye piece into its spot.

The only thought each of their minds held in that moment was: _Just a chance._

Time seemed to stop momentarily and then… Nothing. There was no shining light. There wasn't any sort of spark upon the three of them completing the puzzle. Simply nothing other than the click of the piece locking in.

Malik, Ryou and Yugi each looked at one another, the breath they all seemed to be holding in, released. They looked back down at the now completed triangular puzzle. It was an odd three-dimensional puzzle in the shape of an upside down triangle with a loop on top and an eye in the middle.

"We….." Yugi began

"Must have seemed…" Ryou attempted to continue on

"Really silly." Malik concluded finally. For a moment silence passed over them until they each burst into a fit of giggles and all-around laughter.

However, simply because they were laughing so much doesn't mean that they weren't disappointed. They were. Each of them hoped for something to happen, even if the myth behind the puzzle seemed completely ridiculous. They wanted something to happen, even if it was something small…

The laughter subsided, each boy deciding to cover their faces to hide the silent tears that fell. "How silly." They laughed, pity washing over them at their unusual predicaments. Who would seriously fall for a doll or a bunny or even a presence felt when staring at a mirror? Who would honestly believe them other then themselves, if they were to reveal this secret? They'd simply be laughed at, even more so now, for hoping a wish could solve their problems…

It took moments for each to settle completely before deeming it time to part ways for the day. Yugi thanked each of his friends for the time spent, heading on his way home. Although the time spent on his mind took some guilt off of him for leaving Yami, it didn't completely erase the feelings he truly felt for the doll, nor did it ease the storm in his heart.

They all had a clearer mind after that day, accepting their situations more. However, after making their wish, even if nothing happened, they couldn't help but feel that something big was going to happen…

* * *

**A/N: ANNNND That's that. It's been awhile since I wrote anything that wasn't a poem or essay, so I apologize if I'm a little rusty. This chapter is the second to last one, meaning the next update will be the final one for this story. I apologize once again for the slow pacing of the story and for how long it took to update to here. I wasn't feeling entirely well finishing up the story but I hope it at least somewhat satisfies until the last chapter. Hopefully I'll have it out before school starts. *Crosses fingers* I cannot promise anything currently however.**

**So how was it? Good? Bad? In-between? Please leave me a review to let me know if there's anything I need to work on or to leave your thoughts. Constructive Criticism, please and thank you. Until next time guys!**


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Well, it took a longer time than I would have liked but, I present you with the final installment of "He's the One". It's been a long run and I would like to thank each and everyone of you who has been following this story and reviewing it, so, THANK YOU VERY MUCH! I sincerely apologize for such a long wait, and although I do have my reasons, I won't use any excuses. I've revised and re-did this particular chapter serveral times both while plotting it out and as I wrote it. This, the final piece, I believe to be the best way to end this particular story. I shall explain at the end but, for now, on with the chapter! Enjoy!  
**

_Disclaimer: I own nothing relating to Yugi-Oh, the awesome Kazuki Takahashi does. The only thing I have is the plot to this story._

* * *

_The laughter subsided, each boy deciding to cover their faces to hide the silent tears that fell. "How silly." They laughed, pity washing over them at their unusual predicaments. Who would seriously fall for a doll or a bunny or even a presence felt when staring at a mirror? Who would honestly believe them other then themselves, if they were to reveal this secret? They'd simply be laughed at, even more so now, for hoping a wish could solve their problems…_

_It took moments for each to settle completely before deeming it time to part ways for the day. Yugi thanked each of his friends for the time spent, heading on his way home. Although the time spent on his mind took some guilt off of him for leaving Yami, it didn't completely erase the feelings he truly felt for the doll, nor did it ease the storm in his heart._

_They all had a clearer mind after that day, accepting their situations more. However, after making their wish, even if nothing happened, they couldn't help but feel that something big was going to happen…_

Rain poured the day after the three boys made their wish upon the puzzle.

The rain never seemed to let up, even after the passing of five months since the event…

To everyone in the world, the days passed as normal with the occassional question of why it rained so much. But, to the three who had made a wish, the rain reflected the turmoil they faced inside.

With each passing day, the hurt they faced only seemed to grow, misfortune throwing itself at all directions towards Ryou, Malik and Yugi.

Ryou was the first to experience tragedy, only two weeks after hoping for a chance.

_Yugi had finally begun to rest at night, although still haunted by dreams of a torn-up Yami and a laughing little girl. On that particular night, the phone had woken him from his light slumber. Drowsy and confused, his small form scurried to the phone, hoping its ringing would not wake Grandpa.' _Who could be calling at…'_ His eyes spared a glance at the clock resting in the hallway, '…_one o'clock in the morning?'_ He wondered._

"_Hello, Motou residence." He yawned into the receiver._

"_Yugi!" The voice on the other end wailed. Yugi immediately woke up._

"_Ryou? Ryou what's wrong?"_

"_Yugi!" Ryou cried once again. "Bakura, its Bakura!" _

"_Ryou, calm down and try to tell me what happened…" Ryou's hysterical manner of speaking worried Yugi greatly. He could easily tell Ryou had been crying not long before calling him._

_Sniffling, the albino's voice fizzed over the phone as he tried to explain the situation without breaking down. "I had fallen asleep a few hours ago after putting Bakura back into his cage. I woke up about an hour ago, I had a nightmare that woke me up and when I looked at Bakura's cage, he wasn't in there. I'd forgotten to close the cage door! I looked in every crevice of my house, but he's nowhere to be found! Yugi, please you have to help me, I have a bad feeling, knowing how he is, he might have gotten out of the house!" By this point Ryou had broken down crying. It pained the tri-haired boy to hear his friend so hurt. _

"_Okay Ryou, meet me by the park entrance in ten minutes. Don't worry, we'll find him." Yugi winced as he heard Ryou's cry of agreement before hanging up and rushing to get ready. He scribbled a quick note for his Grandpa, grabbed a backpack he filled and hurriedly ran out the house to meet up with his friend._

_The rain had picked up steadily with each hour that passed while they searched._

_The drizzle had turned into a stinging downpour by the time sunrise rolled around; by the time they found Bakura._

"_Bakura!" Ryou screamed, finding the energy to rush towards his beloved pet after so many hours of searching._

"_Ryou, wait!" Yugi's eyes widened as he reached for his friend. Thunder crashed, echoing for miles._

_Bakura lied in middle of the street, body sprawled out and motionless. His once grumpy eyes, now dull and lifeless; the entire sight of him was just too heartbreaking for words._

_Ryou had fallen to his knees in front of his small beloved. His body shook with the force of his sobs. Many times, he cried out the name of his pet, his secret love. But, a response never came. Yugi kneeled beside his friend, tears welling up in his eyes as well. Not even Bakura deserved this…_

"_Ryou! Yugi!" a familiar voice called out to the two, causing them to look back. Malik was running towards them, out of breath. "Your grandfather called me about an hour ago to tell me what happened; I tried looking for him while looking for you both. Did you… Find… Bakura…" The platinum-haired boy's voice faltered as he finally took in the sight before him._

"_He… Was run over?! Aw man… No, this can't be… I'll kill the person who did this…" Malik spoke the words the other two were too scared to admit, his voice cracking as he struggled to speak. He fell to his knees, dragging his two best friends into a hug. They cried together, Yugi and Malik doing their best to comfort Ryou…_

_A small funeral was held the next day._

Ryou still hadn't gotten over the shock.

But things only got worse from there when Malik had been the next to face misfortune and just only two weeks after.

_The rain had still been pouring when the trio had decided to meet up and try to get Ryou into a somewhat better mood. Things had been going well, going to the usual café and then heading to a nearby park. The rain had randomly picked up its pace as they were going down a large flight of stairs. Malik's foot slipped and he tumbled straight to the ground before Yugi or Ryou could grab him. _

_Malik had immediately been rushed to the hospital. By the time the doctor came out, Malik had already slipped into a coma. Nobody knew how long it would last, but despite this, Yugi and Ryou visited him every day and hoped for the best._

_His coma lasted three weeks. On the final day, Yugi and Ryou had gone to visit like any other day. By the time they reached his assigned room, Malik had already been sitting up and staring blankly out the window. "Malik!" The two shouted, hurrying towards their friend and hugging him tight._

_They looked up when he didn't respond. "Malik?" Yugi whispered gently, slight fear present in his voice._

"_What happened, Malik?" Ryou asked, both boys seeing the silent tears running down the eldest's face._

"_He's gone…" Malik whispered, quietly after awhile. It didn't take a further explanation for the other two to know what he was talking about. They simply hugged him tighter._

Malik hadn't been the same after that day.

Yugi was the final one to face his tragedy, only a week after Malik opened his eyes.

_The three friends had all gathered in Yugi's house, the downpour too great to risk leaving the house. Ryou and Malik had been quiet still caught up in the miseries fate had bestowed upon them. Yugi had not a clue as to what to do or say to lighten up the mood, believing he had already suffered through his own tragedy, like the other two. He hummed softly, thinking of something to say and just as he opened his mouth, the phone began to ring. "I'll be back." He mumbled, hurrying towards the stupid phone._

"_Hello?" He answered_

"_Hello? May I speak to Yugi?" A female voice buzzed._

_Puzzled, Yugi replied. "This is Yugi speaking. How may I help you?"_

"_Oh, Yugi! This is Mrs. Tenshi!"_

"_Mrs. Tenshi?! How are you and the family doing? How was the move?"_

_A small laugh could be heard from the other end of the phone. "I'm doing well, as is everyone else. The move was successful and we've finally been able to settle into our new home. Yumi seems to like it, she was quite excited when we moved in."_

_Hesitation and anxiousness had suddenly flowed through the small boy's body. It took him a moment to collect himself before he swallowed the lump in his throat and continued on with the conversation. "H-how is she anyway? Yumi, I mean. I miss the little energy ball. Has she been a good girl and treating her toys right…?" Yugi mentally hit himself for stuttering but hoped she wouldn't notice his true motive in asking his last question. It seemed as though eternity had passed before he got a reply back._

_A sigh. _

_"Oh my Yumi, she misses you as well Yugi. Thankfully the new house has kept her preoccupied; unfortunately it also gave her an energy increase. She's been playing non-stop with every toy she has, each of them slowly earning their place on 'the shelf'; their all pretty bad ones too, I don't think many will make it till the end of the year. Why, the first doll to go had been the last one we brought her before we moved. That little king doll I think it was." Time seemed to slow for Yugi; he knew what being placed on 'the shelf' meant. It meant the very thing he had been hoping against since the moment he made the decision to leave Yami to Yumi. Yami had been broken and deemed unusable. That was a doll's type of death…_

_Mrs. Tenshi continued rambling on. Yugi somehow managed to properly finish their conversation before they both said goodbye and hung up. He stood there, staring at the phone holder for some time before losing all strength and falling to the ground. Ryou and Malik had been at his side in an instant, concern etching their features. Yugi tried to laugh but, it came out more like a broken squeak as he spat out the words: "Yami was destroyed…" _

_Nothing more needed to be said for the other two to understand and sympathize with him. They all knew too well, losing the last bits of hope they had left for any sort of chance with the objects that dearly held their affections._

The final three months dragged on, with the start of school being the string that held onto the remains of their sanity. Senior year had already begun to prove itself to be a worthy distraction.

"…g… Yug… Yug!" said boy was snapped out of his thoughts by a certain blonde. Joey huffed, "Finally, yer back ta' earth!" Joey sighed in relief, causing Tea and their other friends to laugh. Yugi grinned sheepishly, stealing a glance at Malik and Ryou who were chuckling slightly. A knowing gleam shined in their eyes. They knew exactly what had claimed Yugi's thoughts just moments ago.

"Sorry." Yugi apologized, scratching the back of his head.

No one else knew of the recent events that had passed besides Yugi, Ryou and Malik and they planned to keep it that way. The friends they shared were all sweet and kind hearted but, there is only so much you can tell someone about something they had never gone through before getting odd looks. They weren't willing to go through with that, on top of the despair they already had to shoulder. It was just a relief to the three that they were able to at least go on about their days without shutting down completely, like the days right after the events. Unbeknownst to the three however, their friends had sensed some disturbance and tried their best in order to keep them laughing and smiling.

The conversation continued on until it was time for lessons to start.

The class hushed down after the teacher had called for attention. "Now I know it's a bit of a late in the year, however we have a total of three new students who will be joining us for the remainder of the school year. Please come in." The teacher motioned for the new students to enter. As they did, whispers immediately erupted around the room.

Yugi, Ryou and Malik's thoughts all had drifted off as the chatter around them continued, completely uninterested at the moment.

The chatter was loud enough to pick up, however. Phrases such as, "Three? Isn't that a bit much? Oh, but our class is the smallest in the grade..." or "I wonder why we'd have three new students transfer so late into the year?" travelled back and forth throughout the room. It was one phrase that caught Ryou's attention in particular though.

"Hey, that kid has the same hair color as Ryou! Or is his hair silver?"

At the mention of that, the albino's head snapped up to stare right at the three transfer students. The similarities between him and his best friends were just too close to the transfers. But there was only one that caught his eye the most: a boy with wild white hair and grumpy brown eyes. ' _Bakura?!_' was the only word that travelled through his head as a gasp passed through his lips.

"Ow! What was that for?!" Malik grumbled the moment an elbow connected with his arm. The only response he received from his albino friend was a gesture to take a look at the transfers. Snorting grumpily, the platinum blonde spared a glance at them, his jaw immediately dropping.

Wild spiked, platinum hair and haunting lavender eyes clouded his vision. Malik shook his head in disbelief as the unmistakable feeling of hope swelled within him. "It's him… No way… Yugi! You have to see this…!" His arm shot out to shake his smaller friend out of his trance.

"What?" Yugi whined, clearly displeased with being taken out of his daydreaming. He received the same response Malik had been given only moments before. With a sigh, Yugi focused his attention to the front. Amethyst eyes immediately widened and started fogging up with fresh tears.

Among the trio of the new students, the one who caught Yugi's eyes was the splitting image of the doll he had lost just months ago. A feeling within him screamed that the boy was unmistakably…

"Yami." The boy Yugi had been staring at spoke out in a powerful voice that sent shudders down the small boy's body. "My name is Yami Atem Farao." Ruby eyes scanned the classroom before boring straight into amethyst ones.

"Bakura Dorobō." The albino followed in his introduction, wasting no time in catching the eyes of his softer-looking look-a-like.

"Marik Ishtar Gokuri.", said the final one of the newcomers, already staring at Malik from the beginning.

The whispers in the room continued, though the room was silent for the six who stared at one another. Nobody seemed to notice this, oddly.

"Alright, alright. There you have it. Treat these guys kindly. You three, go find an open seat in the room." The instructor wanted to waste no more time, hurriedly dismissing the boys In order to begin his lesson.

Yami walked in the direction of Yugi, eyes never leaving the other's. Yugi's head was clouded with a myriad of emotions and questions, but his breath was caught in his throat. He mimicked a fish out of water the way his mouth opened and closed as he tried to force the words from his mouth. In the back of his head, Yugi was almost certain his other two friends were facing the same dilemma.

Time seemed to move slowly as Yami sauntered closer to Yugi, the expression on the older's face containing a smirk, as a ton of emotions glimmered in his ruby eyes. With every step, Yugi became more and more positive that this Yami was _his_ Yami. The Yami who had been destroyed just months prior…

Finally, the two were face to face. But, all Yugi could seem to choke out was: "Ya... mi..?" His big amethyst eyes conveyed everything else he failed to ask. Yami's full attention was on Yugi as he watched the small boy struggle to speak and just try to figure out the world's mysteries.

The smirk on Yami's face grew as he started to walk again, to an open seat somewhere behind Yugi, purposefully grazing his hand against the smaller tri-haired boy's hand on his way there. His lips mouthed something that caused Yugi to put his head down in an attempt to hide the smile and blush that lit up his face as a feeling he thought had been lost took over him.

"_This time, we won't have to be separated, Yugi._"

With a quick glance over to his two friends whose faces housed either a bright red blush or ridiculously goofy grin, Yugi was completely sure, without an ounce of doubt, that he was the one. _Maybe wishes and some misfortune aren't all that bad in the end..._ With that in mind, Yugi patted his face preparing for a day filled with explanations of all sorts, lectures and a new beginning.

* * *

**A/N: So it's finally the end. If the ending is disappointing to you, I do apologize but as I stated before, after several attempts to come up with some way I could put (an at least satisfying) close to this story, I feel that this was the best out of them, slightly open-ended for you guys and gals. I hope it didn't bring up a great many questions... So? How was it? Good? Bad? In between? Please R&R and let me know. And thank you for sticking with this story to the very end everyone!**


End file.
